Fifteen-minute consultation: Preseptal and orbital cellulitis

Abstract

‘It is midnight and you are called to see a thirteen-year-old boy who has been brought to the paediatric emergency department with a 24-hour history of swelling and redness of his left eye. He has had a ‘runny nose’ for a couple of days. He is systemically well. His upper and lower lids are red and swollen such that his eye is not open fully, though you elicit normal eye movements when you open his eye. Pupils are equal and reactive with no afferent pupillary defect. Visual acuity and colour vision are normal on examination.’ In this article, we consider the approach to preseptal and orbital cellulitis in children including the initial assessment and management options.