Autologous fascial graft in the treament of third degree congenital blepharoptosis [Innesto autologo di fascia lata nel trattamento della blefaroptosi congenita di terzo grado]

The treatment of ptosis of the eyelid depends on type of lesion, its pathogenesis and severity. In congenital cases, which are generally linked to impairment of the levator palpebrae superioris, surgery is necessary and has the purpose of reinforcing or replacing the deficient function. This paper reports the outcomes of 8 patients, admitted to surgery owing to severe monolateral congenital ptosis of the eyelid. Surgery involved suspension of the tarsal plate to the musculus frontalis, through application of an autologous fascial graft. The choice of an autologous fascial graft as suspension material was prompted by its relative versatility and reliability. Moreover, its very low or absent reactivity made this material preferable to synthetic biomaterials. Considering the positive results achieved, the adopted method proved to be simple, versatile and effective.