Abstract
Purpose: :
Our goal is to characterize the histology of Mueller’s muscle (MM) in patients with Graves' orbitopathy (GO). MM is a secondary eyelid retractor that may contribute to upper eyelid retraction, a predominant clinical feature of GO.
Methods: :
This is a prospective comparative case series at a single institution.Consecutive patients with GO that underwent muellerectomy for correction of upper eyelid retraction from January 2011 to December 2011 were included. Those patients with a history of previous eyelid surgery were excluded. Control specimens were recruited from patients without GO undergoing MM resection for ptosis correction. All specimens were preserved in formalin and studied histologically using routine and immunohistochemical stains for inflammatory markers.
Results: :
Each group consisted of 12 MM specimens. Muscles in the GO group had higher inflammatory markers and fibrosis compared with the control group (p<0.05).
Conclusions: :
Mueller's muscle inflammation and fibrosis may contribute to upper eyelid retraction in Graves’ orbitopathy.
Keywords: eyelid • pathology: human • immunohistochemistry