Metastatic pancreatic carcinoma to the orbital apex presenting as a superior divisional third cranial nerve palsy.
Journal Article
Metastatic tumors to the orbit are rare, especially from a primary pancreatic carcinoma. A 59-year-old man presented with 4 weeks of right eye pain and eyelid swelling. There was right upper eyelid ptosis associated with a right supraduction deficit consistent with a superior divisional third cranial nerve (CN III) palsy. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a right orbital apex lesion. A right orbital exenteration was performed for intractable and severe pain. Surgical pathology demonstrated a poorly differentiated carcinoma that was ultimately felt to be derived from the pancreas. In this report, we describe the clinical and neurological imaging findings of a superior divisional CN III palsy as the presenting manifestation of a presumed metastatic pancreatic carcinoma to the orbital apex, and review the neuroanatomy of CN III with particular emphasis on the anatomical bifurcation of the nerve into a superior and inferior division.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Pecen, PE; Ramey, NA; Richard, MJ; Bhatti, MT
Published Date
- 2012
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 6 /
Start / End Page
- 1941 - 1943
PubMed ID
- 23225996
Pubmed Central ID
- PMC3514055
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1177-5483
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.2147/OPTH.S30208
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- New Zealand