Orbital infarction syndrome after cerebral aneurysm surgery: A case series and literature review

Abstract

To report the clinical characteristics and retinal abnormalities associated with orbital infarction syndrome after cerebral aneurysm clipping surgery.

In this retrospective case series, we evaluated 4 cases of orbital infarction syndrome using fluorescein angiography, optical coherence tomography, and computed tomography images from January 2011 to May 2014. The medical records of these patients including age, sex, laterality of the eyes, visual acuity, intraocular pressure, duration of the operation, location of the aneurysms, and surgical method with the type of approach used to reach the aneurysmal lesions were evaluated.

Aneurysms were located in either the anterior or the posterior communicating artery. Two patients had subarachnoid hemorrhage arising from a ruptured aneurysm, whereas 2 other patients had unruptured aneurysms. Clipping was performed by 3 different surgeons using the pterional craniotomy. The mean time interval from aneurysmal clipping to awareness of vision loss was 10.75 ± 13.8 days. In all patients, optic atrophy and irreversible deterioration of visual acuity ensued. Retinal edema, retinal vascular abnormality, or choroidal hypoperfusion was identified in these patients.

Orbital infarction syndrome is a rare but devastating complication of brain aneurysm clipping surgery. The associated retinal ischemia is not only due to the involvement of the retinal vessels, but also the choroidal circulation.