PEM Source

Your source for all things Pediatric Emergency Medicine

1

Question: Trauma

(Click the link to comment and to vote – voting not working through email, sorry!)

You are seeing a 15 year old who sustained significant facial trauma. He complains of decreased vision in his right eye. On exam you note proptosis, periorbital swelling, and relative afferent pupillary defect (aka Marcus-Gunn pupil) on the left. The intraocular pressure is measured at 45.

What is your next best step?
ProceduresTrauma

pemsou5_wp • February 21, 2023


Previous Post

Next Post

Comments

  1. Kelly February 28, 2023 - 11:56 pm Reply

    E) Transect the inferior crus of the lateral canthal ligament
    Lateral canthotomy involves cutting the lateral canthal ligament, usually the inferior crus and sometimes also the superior crus. This is an emergent procedure to treat orbital compartment syndrome, which is vision-threatening; the procedure should not be delayed for the arrival of an ophthalmologist. Signs of orbital compartment syndrome include: decreased visual acuity, proptosis, relative afferent pupil defect, diffuse subconjunctival hemorrhage, eyelid feels “rock hard” when palpated.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published / Required fields are marked *