[O'Connor's surgical method in abducens nerve paralysis]

Eighteen patients who underwent surgery for nervus abducens paresis (NAP), were kept under observation for up to 23 years after the operation. Three patients had paresis of both nerves. The operation, employing O'Connor's method (11 patients) included the grafting of split inferior and superior rectus muscles on to the insertion of the resected lateral rectus muscle. Six patients underwent resection and retroposition of the lateral and medial rectus muscles respectively. O'Connor's method produced functionally and cosmetically better results than surgery on horizontal muscles in congenital NAP (13 patients). In NAP due to organic damage (e.g., trauma) (5 patients) the results obtained with the two methods were similar.