A prospective study evaluating the necessity of compression eye patches in orbital surgery based on bilateral...

Compression eye patches are commonly used after orbital surgery to prevent retrobulbar hemorrhage and swelling. However, their necessity has not been established. This prospective study evaluates the efficacy of compression eye patches in postoperative care of orbital surgery following bilateral orbital fat decompression surgery.

This study included 64 patients (10 males, 54 females; mean age 41.25 ± 13.31 years) who underwent bilateral orbital fat decompression surgery for proptosis from October 2023 to February 2024. Fifty-eight patients had thyroid eye disease, and six had congenital bulging eyes. A compression eye patch was applied to the left eye for 2 h postoperatively, while the right eye remained untreated. Postoperative bruising, swelling, and complications were evaluated using a standardized scoring chart the day after surgery. Statistical analyses, including Student's T-test and chi-squared tests, were performed to compare outcomes between the eyes.

The mean fat removal was 3.18 ± 1.41 mL in the right eye and 3.45 ± 1.32 mL in the left eye (p = 0.27). Bruising color scores of Grade 2 or higher were noted in 48 right eyes and 46 left eyes (p = 0.83), while area scores were observed in 30 right eyes and 31 left eyes (p = 0.94). Swelling scores of Grade 2 or higher were identical in both eyes (14 cases, p = 0.98). No significant complications, including retrobulbar hemorrhage or subcutaneous hemorrhage, were observed.

Our findings suggest that postoperative compression eye patches may be unnecessary for post-orbital surgery care, as no significant differences were found between patched and unpatched eyes in the same patient.