Enucleation
There are many diseases and conditions that lead to blindness and chronic ocular pain. It is sometimes necessary to remove part (evisceration) or all (enucleation) of the eye. Some blind eyes do NOT need to be removed if they are not painful, have no malignancy, or can be fitted with a cosmetic shell. If medically necessary, enucleation may be required. During an enucleation, the patient is placed under anesthesia and the entire eyeball (the globe) is removed. An implant is then placed in the socket and attached to the eye muscles to fill up the socket and promote natural movement. The goal of surgery is to eliminate chronic ocular pain or tumor and leave the patient with a good cosmetic outcome. Once healed, the socket will be fitted with a custom prosthesis by an ocularist.