Treatment of unilateral acute sixth-nerve palsy with botulinum toxin

We studied 29 consecutive patients with acute unilateral sixth-nerve palsy, who received botulinum toxin injection to the antagonist medial rectus muscle. The average interval between onset of palsy and treatment was 40 days and the mean follow-up from the last injection was 14 months. Before treatment, esotropia in the primary position ranged from 12 to 45 prism diopters and limitation to abduction in the affected eye ranged from -2 (approximately 15 degrees lateral to midline) to -6 (15 degrees nasal to midline). After treatment, 22 of 29 patients (76%) had complete recovery of motility as determined by version testing. Of the seven patients with a residual abduction deficit, two had fusion in the primary position, three had fusion with prismatic correction, and two patients required subsequent surgery. Botulinum toxin injection seems to be an effective treatment option in cases of acute unilateral sixth-nerve palsy.