Repair of traumatic orbital wall defects using conchal cartilage

The authors' aim was to investigate the efficiency of conchal cartilage grafts in defective orbital wall fractures, which are encountered isolated or in combination with other orbitozygomatic fractures. The authors assessed, for this purpose, the follow-up results of patients treated by using conchal cartilage grafts.

Ten patients who had defective orbital wall fractures and were treated by using conchal cartilage graft among those treated for facial fractures in the authors' clinic were included in the study. The wall defects in the patients were detected either with preoperative radiologic images or with orbital exploration performed to look for a possible defect accompanying the fracture with orbital extension during the operation. In all patients (four isolated and six combined orbital fractures), who had defects varying from 100 to 400 mm, conchal cartilage grafts were adapted to the defect. In the postoperative follow-up, Hertel exophthalmometry was also performed together with clinical examination so that enophthalmos that might develop as a complication could be assessed.

In the postoperative period, cartilage graft was palpated slightly in two patients at the edge of the infraorbital rim. Limitation in eye movement, diplopia, and enophthalmos did not occur in our patients, except for one who reported to us 1 year after the primary trauma. No complication in the donor area was observed.

Conchal cartilage could be considered one of the autogenous materials among those materials suitable for the repair of defective orbital wall fractures that are not oversized. It has the advantages of being adequate for reconstruction of the fracture, easy to obtain, easily adaptable to the orbital walls, and having minimum morbidity at the donor site.