Etiologies, periocular manifestations and surgeries for congenital and childhood acquired facial nerve palsy.

AIM: To report periocular surgeries performed for patients with congenital and childhood acquired facial nerve palsy (FNP). METHODS: A retrospective case series of pediatric patients who presented with FNP over the last 34 years, was conducted at two tertiary eye hospitals in Riyadh. Data were collected from electronic charts, hospital records and external photos. Main outcome measures were visual acuity, lagophthalmos, eyelid abnormalities, Bell's phenomena, exposure keratopathy, and corneal scar; in these cases, periocular surgeries were required. RESULTS: Among the 90 recruited subjects; the mean age of onset was 4.8±5.4 years old (range, 0.01 to 17.76 years). Traumatic and congenital causes of FNP were the most common, representing over 80% of the cases. Seventy-one patients developed lagophthalmos, 26 with severe exposure that resulted in scarring. Thirty-six (40%) cases had associated strabismus. Lower lid retraction was the most common eyelid abnormality noted in 23 cases, followed by entropion in 16 and ectropion in 6 cases. Temporary tarsorrhaphy was performed in three patients (3.3%), while 18 patients (20%) needed permanent tarsorrhaphy. Gold weight implants were placed in 17 patients (18.9%). Lower lid retraction repair was performed in twelve patients (13.3%). Five patients (5.6%) underwent lower eyelid entropion repair, and three patients (3.3%) underwent lower eyelid ectropion repair. CONCLUSIONS: Lagophthalmos is the most common finding in children presenting with FNP and needs to be managed early to prevent permanent visual loss. Compared to adults, children may present with a different spectrum of eyelid abnormalities, with lower lid retraction and entropion being the most common eyelid malpositions.

National Guidelines for Colorectal Cancer Screening in Saudi Arabia with strength of recommendations and quality of evidence

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer is the most common cancer among Saudi men and the third commonest among Saudi women. Given the predominance of colorectal cancer compared with other cancers in Saudi Arabia, context-specific guidelines are needed for screening. METHODS: Experts from the Saudi Society of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Saudi Gastroenterology Association, Saudi Oncology Society, Saudi Chapter of Enterostomal Therapy, Family Medicine and Department of Public Health at the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health and a patient advocate was assembled by the Saudi Centre for Evidence-Based Healthcare, a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health. The panel collaborated with a methodological team from McMaster University, Canada to develop national guidelines for colorectal cancer screening. After identifying key questions, the panel conducted a systematic review of all reports on the utility of screening, the cost of screening for colorectal cancer in Saudi Arabia and on the values and preferences of Saudi patients. Meta- analyses, when appropriate, were performed to generate pooled estimates of effect. Using the GRADE approach, the panel used the evidence-to-decision (EtD) framework to assess all domains important in determining the strength and direction of the recommendations (benefits and harms, values and preferences, resource implications, equity, acceptability, and feasibility). Judgments related to the EtD domains were resolved through consensus or voting, if consensus was not reached. The final recommendations were developed during a two-day meeting held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in March 2015. Conflicts of interests among the panel members were handled according to the World Health Organization rules. LIMITATIONS: There is lack of national data on the incidence of adenomatous polyps or the age groups in which the incidence surges. There were no national clinical trials assessing the effectiveness of the different modalities of screening for colorectal cancer and their impact on mortality. CONCLUSION: The panel recommends screening for colorectal cancer in Saudi Arabia in asymptomatic Saudi patients at average risk of colorectal cancer. An infrastructure should be built to achieve that goal.(AU)

Large anterior orbital cyst as a late complication of chalazion surgical drainage.

PURPOSE: To present four patients who developed large cystic lesions attached to the tarsal plate at the site of previously drained chalazion. METHODS: Medical records for all patients who developed cystic lesion as a complication of chalazion surgery were retrospectively reviewed for clinical and radiological findings, treatment provided, histopathological findings, and complications. RESULTS: Four patients (one male and three females) with a mean age of 22 years (range, 11-36 years) were enrolled in the study. A history of chalazion surgery was present in all patients at the same site of the cyst attachment to the tarsal plate. The mean interval between the presentation with the cystic lesion and the chalazion surgery was 13 weeks (range, 6-24 weeks). All patients were treated with surgical excision of the cysts, along with local triamcinolone injection. Histopathological findings of the excised cysts were consistent with chalazion. There was no evidence of recurrence or other complication observed during the follow-up visits (the minimum follow-up duration was 6 months). CONCLUSIONS: Anterior orbital cystic formation (prolapsed chalazion) may occur as a late complication of chalazion surgery. Surgical excision along with steroid injection was effective to manage this rare complication among our patients.

Entropion in children with isolated peripheral facial nerve paresis.

PURPOSE: Adults with facial nerve paresis (FNP) generally develop ectropion, but a recent report of children with syndromatic FNPs implies that entropion may be more common in this setting than ectropion. This study evaluates eyelid position and other periorbital changes in children with isolated, non-syndromatic FNP. METHODS: Charts were reviewed of 10 sequential children who presented to a major national eye referral centre with isolated FNP of variable aetiology. Severity of FNP was assessed according to the House-Brackmann scale. RESULTS: All 10 patients (4 males and 6 females; mean age at presentation, 4 years) had unilateral, isolated FNP. Mild lower-eyelid entropion was present in four patients, and severe lower-eyelid entropion required surgical correction in three patients. All patients had lower eyelid retraction (mean 2.3 mm) and lagophthalmos (mean 2.9 mm). None had enophthalmos, lower eyelid ectropion, or brow ptosis. CONCLUSION: Unlike adults, children with isolated FNP seem prone to develop entropion rather than ectropion. Entropion reported previously in five syndromic children with FNP seems more likely related to patients' age than to their congenital syndromes.