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Michael L. Slavin, MD; Joel S. Glaser, MD

Arch Ophthalmol. 1987;105(3):345-348.

Abstract
• Orbital cellulitis secondary to adjacent paranasal sinusitis presents with marked proptosis, ophthalmoplegia, eyelid edema, chemosis, and/or conjunctival hyperemia. These conditions often precede visual dysfunction. "Posterior" orbital cellulitis secondary to sphenoethmoidal sinusitis may be defined as the clinical syndrome in which early severe visual loss overshadows or precedes accompanying inflammatory orbital signs. The visual loss may be attributed to involvement of the intracanalicular or orbital apical segment of the optic nerve. Total irreversible unilateral visual loss developed in three patients with this syndrome. Severe visual loss was preceded by diplopia in one patient and by bilateral eyelid edema in another. One patient with chronic panparanasal sinusitis with acute visual loss presented with isolated optic disc edema. Proptosis and ductional restriction subsequently developed. The irreversible blindness in these cases may be due to a combination of intracanalicular edema and vasculitis causing optic nerve infarction.

Author Affiliations
From the Division of Neuro-ophthalmology, Department of Ophthalmology, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY (Dr Slavin); School of Medicine, Health Sciences Center, State University of New York at Stony Brook (Dr Slavin); and the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine (Dr Glaser).

Footnotes
Accepted for publication Sept 27, 1986.

Read before the Sixth Meeting of the International Neuro-Ophthalmology Society, Hakone, Japan, June 13, 1986.

Reprint requests to Division of Neuro-ophthalmology, Department of Ophthalmology, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY 11042 (Dr Slavin).

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