A case-control study of an intraoperative corneal abrasion prevention program: holding the gains made with a continuous quality improvement effort.

Background: Corneal injury is the most frequent ocular complication during general anesthesia. Although prevention has appeared feasible, inconsistent use and timing of conventional eye ointment and eyelid tape had failed to adequately prevent intraoperative corneal injuries at a department of anesthesiology in an academic medical center. A continuous quality improvement (CQI) program was thus undertaken to prevent intraoperative corneal injury.