Postoperative ptosis: etiopathogenesis, clinical analysis, and therapeutic management. Apropos of a series of 43 cases

PURPOSE: Acquired postoperative ptosis (PP) are difficult to situate in the current classification of ptosis. Assessement of the mechanisms, the clinical features and the possible treatments of these PP would suggest a new classification of ptosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Among 260 cases of surgically corrected ptosis, 43 cases of PP (16.5%) were detected and analyzed. RESULTS: Forty cases of PP were eligible for this study. Their responsible mechanisms were aponeurotic (57.5%), mixed (aponeurotic and/or myogenic and/or neurogenic) (27.5%) and myogenic (15%). PP was assessed in most cases as being mild (77.5%) and the levator's muscle contraction was most often mildly impaired (77.5%). In these cases, surgical procedure was performed: levator aponeurosis disinsertion repair (85%), Fasanella-Servat procedure (2.5%), frontalis sling (2.5%) and other surgical procedure with synthetic materials (10%). Postoperative complications included 1 case of persistent lid edema and 4 cases of spontaneous suture rupture. Six patients (15%) were secondarily reoperated: 2 for overcorrection (5%) and 4 for undercorrection (10%). The general outcome was good in 90% of cases, insufficient in 5% of cases and unsatisfactory in 5% of cases. CONCLUSION: This study confirms the previously described features of the PP: onset after anterior surgery procedures of usually moderate ptosis, induced by an aponeurotic defect mechanism in most cases. The treatment was exclusively surgical: anterior reinsertion of the levator aponeurosis. For better management, we suggest a new ptosis classification: aponeurotic, myogenic, neurogenic and mixed (aponeurotic and/or myogenic and/or neurogenic) and false or pseudo-ptosis.