Intraoperative Computed Tomography Use in Orbital Fracture Repair: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Intraoperative computed tomography (CT) allows surgeons to make adjustments during orbital fracture repair that may impact postoperative outcomes. Learning/Study Objectives: To determine the impact of intraoperative CT use on intraoperative revision and surgical outcomes for orbital fracture repair. Methods: A systematic review was performed in concordance with the Preferred Reporting Items of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines: the population was patients undergoing orbital fracture repair; intervention was use of intraoperative CT; comparison was patients not undergoing intraoperative CT; and outcomes were intraoperative revision rate, postoperative complications, and secondary revision surgeries. Meta-analysis was performed on the rate of intraoperative revision. Results: The search criteria yielded 790 articles, 377 were eligible for review, and 20 articles met criteria for analysis. In 19, intraoperative imaging led to immediate surgical corrections, with a random pooled effect size of 0.27 (0.20-0.35). Six studies reported secondary revision surgery rates (range 0-10.5%), and six studies reported postoperative complication rates (range 10-30%). Conclusions: Intraoperative imaging helps surgeons make precise, real-time adjustments in 27% of orbital fracture repair cases, which may improve surgical outcomes; however, more research is needed to investigate its impact on health care costs, operating time, and radiation exposure.