Journal Reviews
Conjunctival melanoma involving the lacrimal drainage system
A total of 52 patients were diagnosed with conjunctival melanoma over a period of 17 years, 17 of whom required orbital exenteration. Five of these were found to have melanoma involving the lacrimal drainage apparatus (LDA). One was evident clinically...
Botulinum toxin after orbicularis myectomy
This is a retrospective review of 27 patients with benign essential blepharospasm who had become resistant to treatment with botulinum toxin and had therefore undergone orbicularis myectomy of the upper lids. The study compares the dose and frequency of botulinum...
Which factors predispose to pingecula development in a rural Chinese population?
The authors report a cross-sectional study which aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors for developing pingecula in a rural Chinese population near Shanghai. Nine hundred and fifty-nine persons were recruited from a single village and asked to complete...
The dynamic nature of orbital cavernous haemangiomas
This paper seeks to address the question of how much do orbital cavernous haemangiomas actually change over time, and if there are any identifiable factors which can predict which lesions will grow and which will remain stable. In particular, if...
Wide variation in the volume of the sphenoid trigone
This is a radiological study of the volume of the sphenoid trigone in normal subjects. The authors were interested to see how much volume could be gained by removal of the trigone during an orbital decompression for thyroid eye disease....
A randomised, controlled trial of oral propranolol in infantile haemangioma
Since its use was first reported in the New England Journal in 2008, propranolol has become the preferred treatment for infantile haemangiomas. However, there is no consensus as to the optimum dose or duration of treatment and there is a...
Better outcomes from early repair of Type B blow-out fractures
This paper examines whether early, rather than late, surgical repair results in better motility outcomes for a particular subgroup of orbital floor blowout fractures. The authors divide floor fractures into Types A and B, depending on whether or not the...
A new technique for correction of medial ectropion with a lax medial canthal tendon
This is a prospective study of a new technique for repair of medial ectropion associated with medial canthal tendon (MCT) laxity. The procedure was performed on 79 eyes and involved excision of an ellipse of tissue from below the punctum...
Occult spread of squamous cell carcinoma into the orbit
The authors describe two cases that may represent perineural spread of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) into the orbit. Both cases had cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas in the region of the lateral orbital wall (innervated by the zygomatico-temporal nerve) which...
A diagnostic imaging technique for optic pathway tumours
The authors discuss the difficult clinical scenario of patients with deteriorating visual function and an optic pathway lesion. The morbidity associated with biopsy means a highly sensitive and specific imaging technique would be of great value. The authors describe the...
Orbital cellulitis in Scotland: current incidents, aetiology, management and outcomes
This is a one year prospective study using the Scottish ophthalmic surveillance unit reporting system amongst Scottish ophthalmologists. Only patients residing within Scotland with a new diagnosis of orbital cellulitis between November 2011 and October 2012 were including in this...
A tarso-conjunctival flap for paralytic ectropion
This is a review of 110 patients with paralytic ectropion who underwent a lateral tarso-conjunctival flap procedure. The technique involves fashioning a 4-8mm wide lateral tarso-conjunctival flap in a similar way to a lateral Hughes flap. This is then sutured...
