Isolated and combined pareses of cranial nerves III, IV and VI. A retrospective study of 412 patients.

We evaluated the hospital records of 412 patients with isolated or combined ocular nerve palsies in a retrospective study. Palsies of the oculomotor nerve (n = 172) and of the abducens nerve (n = 165) were more frequent than those of the trochlear nerve (n = 25). Combined ocular nerve palsies (n = 50) were generally combinations of the 3rd and 6th cranial nerves (n = 21) or pareses of all three ocular nerves (n = 17). 165 ocular nerve palsies were due to vascular causes: in 135 of these cases diabetes mellitus and hypertension were present. The oculomotor nerve was most frequently affected; in 63% there was no involvement of the pupil. In inflammatory disease and brain tumor the abducens nerve was most frequently affected, with aneurysm of the oculomotor nerve. The origin of ophthalmoplegia was unclear in 73 patients. Ocular nerve paralysis was most common with tumors, aneurysm, and vascular processes and in 206 cases was only partial. Pain was associated with tumor, trauma and aneurysm. In trochlear nerve palsies concomitant pain was much less frequent than in palsies of the other two ocular nerves. The clinical course was followed for 3 weeks in 352 patients; in 191 patients there was a complete regression of the pareses and in 59 only a partial recovery. The most favorable prognosis was with inflammatory and vascular lesions; in the latter the outcome was improved by the administration of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.