Eyebrow Elevation as a Prognostic Factor for Success of Frontalis Suspension in Severe Congenital Ptosis

The study aims at evaluating eyebrow elevation as a prognostic factor for frontalis sling procedure success in patients suffering from severe congenital ptosis with poor levator function.

This is a retrospective study that included 66 eyelids of 57 patients selected from a surgical log database between January 2016 and June 2019. All of them underwent frontalis suspension surgery for treating severe congenital myogenic ptosis with poor levator function. Based on the absence or presence of brow elevation, patients were divided into two groups: 1 and 2, respectively. The latter was further subdivided into subgroup A with unilateral brow elevation and subgroup B with bilateral brow elevation. All included cases completed 6 months of follow-up after surgery. Postoperative functional outcomes in the form of margin reflex distance (MRD1) and palpebral aperture (PA) were recorded and correlated to preoperative brow elevation status.

Both principal groups showed improvement of MRD1 and PA compared to the preoperative values. There was no statistically significant difference between both groups for the tested parameters in the 1st postoperative week. By the 6th postoperative month, MRD1 and PA showed statistically significant higher values in group 2 compared to group 1 (p<0.001). However, the difference between subgroups A and B was statistically insignificant for the same parameters.

Eyebrow elevation is significantly associated with the success of frontalis suspension procedure. Hence, brow position evaluation should be included in the preoperative assessment of patients undergoing frontalis suspension for congenital ptosis.