Abstract
Objective: The complete or partial obstruction of the lacrimal system is a disorder that manifests clinically by epiphora and/or recurrent dacryocystitis. The recommended treatment for obstructions below the common canaliculus is external or endoscopic transnasal dacryocystorhinostomy (ETDCR). This study aims to evaluate ETDCR as surgical treatment for patients with lower lacrimal system obstruction.
Method: This was a retrospective study, performed at the Complexo Hospitalar Edmundo Vasconcelos in the period from 2000 to 2009, with 20 patients showing low obstruction of the lacrimal system unilaterally or bilaterally, which were submitted to ETDCR with a total of 27 queries.
Results: A total of 27 procedures were performed in 20 patients (10 male and 10 female, mean age of 1.6 to 81 years). The most common complaint was epiphora, and the most frequent causes were idiopathic (59.2%), followed by congenital (29.6%), iatrogenic (4.5%), and trauma after radiotherapy (3.7%). Two patients had a new blockage in the postoperative period, and only 3 patients remained with Crowcroft probe for a period of 3 months postoperatively. The success rate of ETDCR in our series was 92.5%.
Conclusion: ETDCR proved to be a safe technique as a surgical option to treat lower lacrimal system obstruction, with some advantages compared to the external technique, and it can still be accomplished without the use of a stent.
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