Need for Oculoplasty

Is there a need for an oculoplasty surgeon? Well to admit frankly, my personal experience is that the plastic or neurosurgeon or even the maxillofacial surgeron is reluctant to touch the eye ball or surrounding areas. My personal experience especially when managing serious conditions like orbital fractures is that the non ophthalmic surgeon is very comfortable when the ophthalmic surgeon is around.

The eye is a small organ in a small space with many structures all around. The importance of the eyes cannot be understated. The nose and the ears are not as important as the eyes. One argument in my favour is the way the nerves from the brain are organized. There are 12 cranial nerves, of which about 4 nerves are dedicated for supplying the eyes. The optic nerve can be considered the most important and is deeply interlinked with structures in the brain. The other nerves the 3rd, 4th and 6th nerve supply the muscles  of the eyes. In other words, of the 12 cranial nerves, 4 are exclusive to the eyes.

Need I say more about the importance of the eyes. Hence I do understand the importance of oculoplasty ... more in not creating new problems for the patient and also to ensure none of the important visual functions are disturbed...

Oculoplasty is here to stay and will be established soon...