There is no strict by-the-book rule as to which approach is the best strabismus surgery for patients with sensory exotropia. More commonly, a monocular lateral rectus recession and a medial rectus resection (monocular R & R; MRR) is performed in the eye with a poorer prognosis. Rarely, for larger deviations, a third or fourth horizontal muscle in the better eye is added. This study aimed to determine the outcomes of strabismus surgery performed for sensory exotropia in a tertiary hospital in the Philippines.

The medical records of all patients with sensory exotropia who underwent strabismus surgical correction from January 2015 to December 2019 were retrospectively reviewed.

A total of 29 medical records satisfied the inclusion criteria. Mean age at diagnosis and at the time of surgery were 7.5 ± 11.6 (range: 1 to 68 years) and 12.4 ± 16.2 years (range: 1 to 68 years) years old, respectively, with a mean follow-up of 6.2 months (range: 3 to 24 months). After a mean follow-up of 6.2 months, the overall success (alignment in primary position is within 10 prism diopters of orthotropia) was relatively low, where 34% were successful, 65.5% developed recurrence, and none had overcorrections. Survival plots of both surgeries revealed a decline in success probability in achieving desired alignment six months after surgery.

We reported the surgical outcomes of 29 patients with sensory exotropia. The general trend realized was that the decline in success rates of good alignment was evident beginning six months post-operatively. The retrospective design serves as a limitation and hence, readers should treat results with caution.