Orbital wall and volume relationships.

Assuming that intraorbital volume is a space defined by the orbital walls, and that intraorbital contents represent a space occupied by soft tissues, changes between volume and contents will result in movement of the globe in usually a forward (exophthalmic) or backward (enophthalmic) direction. An understanding of the phenomenon is important if the clinician is to judge the effects of traumatic displacement of an orbital wall on globe positions and if the clinician is to design a reconstructive procedure to correct these changes. To study such relationships, we have designed physical models based on measurements of five dry human skulls. With these models, it has been possible to move a whole wall or part of a wall and, thereby, adjust the orbital volume. The experimental manipulations are useful in predicting the relationship of the orbital wall position and volume-information that can be ultimately used for diagnosis and reconstructive purposes.