# Systolic propulsion of the eyeballs in severe tricuspid regurgitation: a case series and review of the literature

**Authors:** Hadi Beaini, Jessica Qiu, Corbin Foster, Anas Jawaid, E. Ashley Hardin, Maryjane Farr, Faris G. Araj

PMC · DOI: 10.1515/med-2026-1395 · Open Medicine · 2026-03-20

## TL;DR

This paper reports two new cases of eyeball systolic propulsion in severe tricuspid regurgitation and reviews its rare, ominous clinical significance.

## Contribution

Adds two new cases with high-quality media and provides the most comprehensive literature review on systolic eyeball propulsion in severe TR.

## Key findings

- Systolic propulsion of the eyeballs is a rare sign of severe tricuspid regurgitation.
- The phenomenon is associated with profound right ventricular dysfunction and poor prognosis.
- High-quality images and video are provided for the first time in such cases.

## Abstract

Severe tricuspid regurgitation (TR) can be a phenotypic manifestation of an underlying disease process that is the primary driver of patient prognosis. Associated clinical signs such as small vein pulsations are similarly prognostic. Systolic propulsion of the eyeballs is an extreme manifestation of severe TR with only seven reported cases in the literature. We herein report two additional cases, review the available literature, and discuss prognostic implications of this phenomenon.

Two patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation and systolic propulsion of the eyeballs are described in a comprehensive manner. Unlike previous reports, we include contemporary high-quality images and video of the phenomenon in addition to the most in-depth review of the literature on this subject to date.

Systolic propulsion of the eyeballs is a manifestation of severe tricuspid regurgitation in the background of profound right ventricular dysfunction. We believe this is a rare clinical sign that carries ominous prognostic implications.

## Full-text entities

- **Diseases:** TR (MESH:D014262), right ventricular dysfunction (MESH:D018497)
- **Species:** Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606]

## Full text

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## Figures

9 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC13001992/full.md

## References

15 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC13001992/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC13001992