Orbital floor mesh

Key points

• Definition: Blowout orbital floor fractures can be repaired using titanium mesh, which gives a characteristic recognizable imaging appearance on computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

• Classic clue: The patient presents for CT or MRI for his or her current complaint, frequently trauma to the head or face. Neither the patient nor the referring physician mentions the fact that the patient has undergone prior surgery until after orbital floor mesh is detected and inquiries are made. The referring physician did not know about the surgery, and the patient did not think it mattered.

• Both CT and MRI appearances are classic “Aunt Minnie’s” (cases with radiologic findings so specific and compelling that no realistic differential diagnosis exists).