Does delayed repair of eyelid lacerations compromise outcome?

We designed a study to determine if the repair of traumatic eyelid lacerations can be delayed to allow for the most appropriate setting and surgeon without increasing complications. We conducted a retrospective chart review of all eyelid lacerations treated by the Ophthalmology service at the Medical College of Wisconsin over a 38-month period and identified 143 patients. Of these, 92 (64.3%) were adults and 51 (35.7%) were children under 18 years of age. Males accounted for 92 of 143 patients (64.3%). One hundred eight cases (75.5%) were repaired in an operating room. Seventy-seven cases (53.8%) had canalicular system involvement. The median time from injury-to-repair was 16.5 h (mean, 33.1 h; range, 2–584 h). Ninety-five patients (66.4%) underwent repair b24 h after injury; 48 (33.6%) were repaired after 24 h. Patients repaired b24 h after injury were more likely to be younger (24.5 years vs. 32.0 years, p = 0.02), children under the age of 18 (45.2% vs. 16.7%, p b 0.01), less likely to have canalicular involvement (36.8% vs. 87.5%, p b 0.01) and less likely to be repaired in the operating room (64.2% vs. 98.0%, p b 0.01). There were 9 complications noted in follow up care, with 6 occurring in patients repaired within 24 h of injury (6.3%) and 3 occurring in patients repaired after 24 h (2.0%), which did not reach the level of statistical significance (p = 0.14). Complications included: ptosis (4), lid retraction (2), epithelial cyst (1), pyogenic granuloma (1) and eyelid deformity (1). No patient developed infection, chronic epiphora, or slit canaliculus. Three of the 4 cases