Orbital complications of frontal sinusitis

Abstract

Sinusitis, in the antibiotic era, is a disease process for which infectious complications have become increasingly uncommon. It is estimated that a maximum of 1%-3% of all sinus infections result in intraorbital or intracranial complications [22]. The preantibiotic era was witness to a 17% incidence of death and 20% incidence of blindness in postseptal infections, declining in the modern era to 1%-2% and 1%-8%, respectively [6, 22]. The persistence of such morbidities demands further study of the complications of sinusitis. Frontal sinusitis and orbital complications thereof is a narrow clinical window that demands both a high level of diagnostic acumen and technical ability to engender a successful outcome. A thorough understanding of the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and current treatment recommendations for orbital complications of frontal sinusitis will allow physicians to decrease the morbidity and mortality associated with this condition. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2005.