Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

GLP-1 Drugs Increase Risk of Macular Degeneration

A recent study in JAMA Network Ophthalmology found that older adults with diabetes who were treated with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) had a significantly higher risk of developing neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). The retrospective study, conducted from January 2020 to November 2023, followed patients for up to 3 years. It included individuals aged 66 years or older (46.6% female) who had a diagnosis of diabetes and at least 12 months of follow-up …

63-Year-Old With Sudden Visual Disturbance

A 63-year-old man presents to urgent care with sudden-onset floaters and blurred vision in his right eye for one day. He denies trauma, headache, or flashes of light. He has no history of similar symptoms. His past medical history includes hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Vital signs are normal. Visual acuity measures 20/40 OD and 20/25 OS. No facial asymmetry or eyelid swelling is noted. Visual fields are intact bilaterally. A non-dilated fundoscopic exam is …

An Unresponsive Pupil in the Urgent Care: Can A Diagnosis Be Made from the Bedside History and Exam?

Urgent message: Ocular complaints for which there is no immediate, obvious explanation do not necessarily have to be referred to the emergency room or ophthalmology. Employing the process of elimination to narrow down a broad differential, using the available evidence, can expedite the correct diagnosis while allowing the patient to remain in the urgent care. Kayla Penny, BS; Joseph LaRochelle, PharmD, BCPPS, FCCP; Deirdre Hooper, MD; Haley Caire, BS; and Kelsey Rooney, BS CASE PRESENTATION …

Management of Ocular Complaints in Urgent Care: Part 1

Urgent message: Triage of eye conditions in urgent care to ensure the best patient outcome requires knowing what equipment to use and understanding when to refer to an ophthalmologist. Always remember to document acuity of vision in all patients presenting with an eye complaint. SARVOTHAM KINI, MD Introduction Ocular complaints are extremely common in the urgent care setting. Yet the capacity of individual urgent care centers to provide high quality eye care is variable. The …