Disparities in discharge patterns of admitted older patients with ocular trauma

•Our study found nationwide disparities in discharge patterns of older patients admitted with ocular trauma.•Injury severity and prior nursing home residency impacted advanced care facilities (ACF) placement the most.•Sight-threatening open globe injuries were not as impactful on discharge decisions.•Females, white race, and medicare insurance-covered patients were disproportionately discharged to ACF.•Hispanic, Black, male, and self-paying older patients were disproportionately discharged home. In older patients, poor vision from ocular trauma increases the likelihood of further injuries and repeat hospitalizations, underscoring the need for appropriate post-hospitalization care. We sought to evaluate disposition patterns of older patients admitted with ocular trauma. This retrospective observational study analyzed the National Trauma Data Bank (2008–2014) and de-identified data of patients, ≥65 years old, admitted with ocular trauma were identified using ICD-9CM and E-codes. Age, gender, race/ethnicity, type of ocular injury, comorbidities, Injury Severity Score (ISS), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, length of hospital stay, location and US region, insurance, and discharge disposition were extracted. Analysis was performed with student's t-test, Chi-squared test, and odds ratios (OR) using SPSS software. Statistical significance was set at P 65yrs. 26,346 (45.4%) were discharged home and 23,314 (40.1%) to an advanced care facility (ACF). Nursing home residents were most likely to return to ACF (OR, 4.76; 95%CI, 4.40–5.14; P < .001). Patients with severe traumatic brain injury (Glasgow coma score [GCS]