Cosmetic Comparison Between the Modified Uchida Method and the Mustarde Method for Blepharophimosis-Ptosis-Epicanthus Inversus Syndrome

Abstract

Purpose: Blepharophimosis-ptosis-epicanthus inversus syndrome (BPES) is a rare, congenital, surgically challenging disease. We undertook an objective, functional, and cosmetic comparison between the modified Uchida procedure and the Mustarde procedure on Asian patients with BPES.

Design: This is a retrospective, comparative, interventional case series with the description of 2 surgical techniques.

Participants: Twenty consecutive Japanese patients with BPES were studied.

Methods: The patients were assigned to either the modified Uchida or the Mustarde procedure on the basis of preoperative intercanthal distance (ICD) ratio (ICD/palpebral fissure width). Intercanthal distance and margin reflex distance were measured from photographs before and after surgery. Classifications were made according to epicanthal fold score and cosmetic score using a visual analog scale (VAS).

Main outcome measures: The main outcome measures were postoperative improvement in ICD ratio and the VAS.

Results: Of the 20 patients, 5 underwent the modified Uchida procedure and the other 15 underwent the Mustarde procedure. The preoperative median ICD ratio was 2.0 (range, 1.9-2.5) and 2.5 (range, 2.0-3.4) for the modified Uchida and Mustarde procedures, respectively, and decreased to 1.5 (range, 1.5-1.7) and 1.6 (range, 1.5-1.8) postoperatively. The mean ICD reduction rate was 35.7% (SD, 1.0%) in the Mustarde group and 22.1% (SD, 1.3%) in the modified Uchida group (P < 0.001).The mean VAS for the modified Uchida and Mustarde procedures was 5.9 (SD, 1.3) and 2.8 (SD, 1.1), respectively, which was statistically significant (P = 0.0166).

Conclusions: Both the modified Uchida and Mustarde procedures could effectively shorten the ICD; however, cosmetic results were significantly superior using the modified Uchida method.