Isolated medial orbital blow-out fracture with medial rectus entrapment

Abstract

Purpose: The authors report on three cases of isolated medial orbital blow-out fracture with medial rectus entrapment which occurred in black males. Only a few similar cases have been reported in the literature.

Methods: The diagnosis was established with the help of tomography and CT scan of the orbit.

Results: The diagnosis could be expected from the clinical signs occurring after blow-out trauma mechanisms: eyelid emphysema, nasal subconjunctival haemorrhage, motility disturbance, enophthalmos.

Conclusion: An ethnic anatomic hypothesis could explain the predominance of this fracture in blacks. This fracture often remains undiagnosed. The diagnosis was based on axial and especially coronal CT scan of the orbit. The physician should be alerted by some clinical signs that justify these radiographic techniques.