Ophthalmoplegia without severe painful eyelid swelling in acute dacryoadenitis: a case report

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Abstract: Here, we present a case of right eyelid drooping in a 79-year-old man. Neurological examination revealed ptosis of the right eye without severe painful eyelid swelling and redness. An ocular motility examination of the right eye revealed upward limitation and downward overshoot. The results of routine blood examinations were within normal limits, and no autoantibodies were detected. Orbital magnetic resonance images revealed mild right eyelid swelling and lacrimal gland enlargement, indicating orbital inflammation. The ocular discharge was positive for Staphylococcus hominis by culture and the patient was diagnosed as having acute dacryoadenitis. Treatment with topical and systemic administration of antibiotics rapidly improved symptoms. Ocular infection is not usually suspected in the absence of local severe painful swelling and redness, and painless acute dacryoadenitis presenting as ophthalmoplegia and ptosis may be misdiagnosed. Orbital inflammation may rapidly progress to orbital cellulitis with treatment delay, which may also lead to aggravation of ophthalmic prognosis. Therefore, neurologists should be aware of the possibility of acute dacryoadenitis occurring without the local severe inflammatory findings mimicking neurological diseases, and acute dacryoadenitis should be considered in patients with ophthalmoplegia even in the absence of severe painful eyelid swelling and redness.