Needle aspiration of a traumatic subperiosteal haematoma of the orbit
- 1Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- 2Division of Ophthalmology, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, San Jose, CA, USA
- 3Department of Ophthalmology, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH, USA
- Correspondence to: Maria C Rojas, MD, Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, 300 Pasteur Drive, Suite A157, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; mrojas{at}pol.net
- Accepted 5 November 2001
Subperiosteal haematomas of the orbit are an uncommon cause of proptosis after trauma. Complications include diplopia, persisting mass, and compressive optic neuropathy. Treatment options include observation, needle aspiration, and surgical evacuation. In symptomatic patients without indications for orbital exploration, treatment with needle aspiration is less invasive than surgical drainage. We report a case of a traumatic subperiosteal haematoma successfully treated with needle aspiration, demonstrating that in appropriate patients, needle aspiration can result in resolution of symptoms without a more invasive procedure.
Case report
A 9 year old girl presented with diplopia 4 days after falling off a fence and striking the right side of her face. She denied decreased visual acuity, eye pain, or previous history of diplopia or proptosis. Her past medical and ocular histories were unremarkable.
On examination, her visual acuity was 6/6 …
