Enucleation


Surgical removal of an eyeball.  In this procedure, the eye muscles, eyelids, brows and surrounding skin are left intact.  The surgery is usually performed when there is a fatal eye tumour, when there is severe pain in a blind eye, or if there is severe infection or trauma to an eye.

A general anaesthetic is usually administered and surgery usually lasts one to two hours.  A plastic implant is usually placed in the eye socket.  Muscles are reattached around the implant and it is then covered with the conjunctiva.  Following surgery, the eye is covered with an eye pad and painkillers are usually prescribed, together with eye drops and/or ointments.  It is generally a safe procedure with few complications, which include; bleeding, infection, swelling and scarring.  The eye socket usually heals within six weeks after which an ocular prosthetic is placed in the eye between the eyelids.  The artificial eye usually looks very similar to the normal eye and will move accordingly although movement may not be as natural and eyelids may be positioned differently.  After enucleation, vision is dependent on the other eye, which usually adapts and becomes more efficient. 


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