Upper eyelid platinum chain placement for treating paralytic lagophthalmos

Abstract

For the definitive treatment of lagophthalmos and satisfactory rehabilitation of the affected eye, different surgical strategies have been proposed, including static or dynamic procedures. Although some of these can have good results, lid loading is now the most common technique for treating paralytic long-term lagophthalmos. Among the different types of loading, the use of a platinum chain is preferred to the use of a standard gold weight because platinum has a higher density than gold and is also more biocompatible. In this paper authors retrospectively analyzed 43 patients with regards to functional and cosmetic results. Questionnaires were also employed to assess changes and improvements in the patients' quality of life. Analysis of the excellent results achieved confirmed that platinum chain lid loading should be considered as a first-line treatment for paralytic lagophthalmos rehabilitation. It is a simple, reliable, and effective technique that significantly improves the health-related quality of life of patients.

Keywords: Eyelid loading; Facial palsy; Lagophthalmos; Platinum chain.