Bilateral blindness following a stabbing assault: A case report

INTRODUCTION: Stabbing is relatively frequent in Morocco and constitutes a major public health concern. Our observation is interesting by the particularity and the aggressiveness of the trauma leading to an irreversible bilateral blindness. CASE PRESENTATION: The present observation relates to a patient who was victim of a stabbing assault. The examination objectified a facial wound in front of the right lateral canthus with a broken weapon in place. An urgent craniofacial CT scan was performed showing a hyperdense penetrating path of the stabbing from the lateral wall of the right orbit, associated with a bursting of the globe, obliquely crossing the anterior ethmoid cells and severing the optic nerve on the left side. Surgical exploration was made with an extraction of the remaining part of the knife. Bilateral blindness was irreversible and the patient had a psychiatric follow up. CONCLUSION: Aggressions are a sad reality, expressing anger and violence on the part of a young adult, present in any society with often dreaded consequences.