Orbital subperiosteal hematoma (epidural hematoma of the orbit)

Three cases are presented of subperiosteal hematomas, which can be thought of as epidural hematomas of the orbit. One occurred in a child associated with an episode of violent vomiting, the second in an adult with a history of remote head trauma who presented with a slowly progressive course suggestive of thyroid eye disease, and the third in a young patient after acute trauma probably associated with the injections of a local anesthetic agent or possibly the passage of a deep suture. Skull x-rays, computed tomography, and ultrasonographic examinations detected and localized the lesion in each case. Both patients who were operated on enjoyed prompt and total resolution of their symptoms after surgical extirpation of the lesion. In the third patient, the lesion regressed on its own.