Contralateral amaurosis after retrobulbar injection

Contralateral amaurosis after retrobulbar injection of local anesthetic agents occurred in two patients, a 64-year-old woman and a 57-year-old man. The amaurosis resulted from migration of the anesthetic agents to the optic chiasm and contralateral optic nerve via the subarachnoid space. In both cases visual acuity returned to preoperative levels within 90 minutes. A modified technique in which patients look straight ahead or slightly downward and outward during retrobulbar injection, as opposed to the traditional upward and inward positioning of the globe, avoids inadvertent piercing of the sheaths of the optic nerve and injection of substances into the subarachnoid space.