Comparison of Measurement Methods of Exophthalmos and Its Forensic Significance

Abstract

 Objective To compare the differences between Hertel exophthalmometry and CT on exophthalmos measurement, and explore its practical application value in forensic medicine. Methods Fifty-six normal individuals without eye injuries or diseases were selected as the control group. The absolute values of exophthalmos were measured in the standardized CT image workstation. The difference of binocular exophthalmos was compared in normal group. Forty-seven cases with unilateral orbital fracture were divided into injured eye group and normal eye group according to the presence of binocular orbital fractures. The differences of the absolute values of eophthalmos from the same eye and the relative values of eophthalmos between two eyes for same person measured by Hertel exophthalmometry and CT were analyzed. Results There was no statistical difference of exophthalmos between the normal eyes measured by CT method. In the normal eye group, the absolute value of exophthalmos measured by CT method was （16.66±5.41） mm, which was （16.16±4.45） mm when measured by the Hertel exophthalmometry method. There was no statistical difference between two groups （P>0.05）. In the injured eye group, there was statistical difference between the absolute values of exophthalmos measured by two measurement methods （P<0.05）. There was no statistical difference of the relative values of exophthalmos between the injured eyes and the normal eyes by two measurement methods （P>0.05）. Conclusion CT method has a good consistency with Hertel exophthalmometry, which can be applied into the practice of medicolegal expertise.