Postoperative Improvement of Diplopia and Extraocular Muscle Movement in Patients With Reconstructive Surgeries for Orbital Floor Fractures.

OBJECTIVE: With orbital floor fracture incidence rates increasing year by year, many patients require surgical treatment to improve diplopia, limitation of extraocular muscle movement (EOM), enophthalmos, and midface appearance. With the use of high-density polyethylene, titanium screws, titanium plate, and titanium mesh to repair an orbital floor fracture, enophthalmos and midfacial deformity correction procedures have made great progress. However, attenuating diplopia and the limitation of EOM are still difficult problems to prevent.

METHODS: The clinical data of 92 patients with reconstructive surgeries after orbital floor fracture were prospectively studied. The position, range of fracture, and incarceration of extraocular muscles were determined by computed tomography scanning. A Hess screen and a synoptophore examination were used to determine the EOM and diplopia. The Hess area ratio (HAR%) and the grade of diplopia were measured before and 1, 3, and 6 months after surgery. Diplopia was evaluated, and the severity was recorded accordingly.

RESULTS: Diplopia rates in patients with simple orbital floor fracture showed a significant difference preoperatively and postoperatively at 1 and 3 months (P < 0.05) compared with diplopia rates at 6 months and 12 months after operation, which had no significant difference (P > 0.05). There was a statistically significant difference (P < 0. 05) among patients with an orbital floor fracture who had an operation within 3 weeks or more than 3 months after injury. Compared with preoperative and postoperative findings at 1 and 3 months, the limitation of EOM in patients with orbital floor fractures had a significant difference (P < 0.05); however, compared with 3 and 6 months after operation, there was no significant difference (P > 0.05). There was a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05) in patients with orbital floor fractures having had an operation within 3 weeks and more than 3 months after injury. The difference of improvement for diplopia after operation among HAR% < 65%, 65% ≤ HAR% ≤ 85%, and HAR% >85% groups were statistically significant (P <0.05). Postsurgically, the HAR% of the patients was improved, and the difference of HAR% between patients before and after the operation was statistically significant (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Surgical management can effectively improve diplopia and EOM disorder of patients with orbital floor fractures. Improvement statistics were calculated by a Hess screen and a synoptophore. Hess area ratio is a useful method to convert the Hess screen into a numerical value and can therefore be used to compare patients in clinical treatment of orbital wall fracture.