ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To report a case of eyeball protrusion with optic chiasmal injury due to eyeball trauma. CASE SUMMARY: A 59-year-old male presented to the emergency room for right eyeball pain, eyeball protrusion and decreased visual acuity after collision with a metal pipe. On initial examination, the right eyeball was protruded, the patient could not perceive light, his pupil was dilated and did not respond to the light. The patient had a laceration of the lower canaliculi and the medial, superior and inferior rectus muscles were separated from the eyeball. Abnormal left pupil response was observed, and visual acuity of the left eye was 0.7. He underwent primary repair of the right medial, inferior and superior rectus muscles and reconstruction of the lower canaliculi. Because the visual field of the left eye at post-operative day 1 demonstrated temporal hemianopsia, an optic chiasmal injury was revealed on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The patient underwent left optic chiasmal decompression because the visual field was aggravated despite the immediate high dose of corticosteroid therapy. At post-operative 2 months, the patient's left visual acuity was 0.3 and the visual field was stable. CONCLUSIONS: Optic chiasmal injury should be considered and promptly diagnosed through visual field test and MRI when ipsilateral optic nerve injury with abnormal contralateral pupil response is caused by eyeball protrusion. Optic chiasmal decompression should be considered when traumatic optic nerve and chiasmal injuries do not respond to high-dose corticosteroid therapy.