Abstract
We report a case of severe irregular corneal astigmatism resulting from delayed diagnosis of suture exposure following blepharoptosis surgery. An 81-year-old man who had bilateral blepharoptosis surgery and two revisions on his right eye before he complained foreign body sensation (FBS) and blurred vision of his right eye. The visual acuity was 0.4 and the MRD1 was 1 mm for his right eye. A very severe corneal astigmatism of 7.7D, eccentricity of 0.53, corneal thinning, and higher order aberration (HOA) of 3.346 μm was found. Scratch-like lesions on the upper cornea suggested the presence of suture exposure; however, no sutures were found by the previous physicians and at our fist ⇒ first examination. With greater effort, a large conjunctival fold on the back of upper tarsus was turned over to reveal 2 interrupted sutures protruding the palpebral conjunctiva. The sutures were removed, and the FBS quickly disappeared. However, the patient’s blurred vision persisted. His right eye’s visual acuity was 0.6, and the astigmatism (6.8D), eccentricity (0.72), and HOA (2.993 µm) were comparable to that before suture removal. Early diagnosis of suture exposure is critical to avoid severe complications and vision impairment. Attention should be paid to large conjunctival folds especially in re-operated cases.