Dacryocystitis is an inflammation of the lacrimal sac, which is located between the nose and the inner corner of the eyelids. It usually occurs due to obstruction of the nasolacrimal duct, which conducts tear fluid into the nasal cavity. Pathogenic bacteria accumulate in the bag, and inflammation develops. Dacryocystitis can be acute or chronic. Its immediate causes can be congenital obstruction of the lacrimal ducts, trauma, any infectious disease of the eye or its consequences.
Causes of dacryocystitis
The main root cause of chronic dacryocystitis is narrowing or obstruction of the nasolacrimal canal. Without access to the nasal cavity, the lacrimal fluid accumulates in the lacrimal sac, rarely causing inflammation of its mucous membrane. The bag is strongly stretched, sometimes reaching the size of a cherry, it becomes clearly visible under thinned skin.
The impetus for the development of dacryocystitis can be all sorts of diseases of the nose, especially chronic rhinitis. There is dacryocystitis and a consequence of the inflammatory process in the maxillary sinus adjacent to the lacrimal sac (sinusitis); can also develop as a result of an injury to the nose.
Treatment of dacryocystitis
In adults, you can try to achieve patency of the lacrimal ducts by forced washing with disinfectant solutions. In cases where medical treatment does not help, or the disease has become chronic, there is a need for surgical treatment. In such situations, endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy is traditionally performed, when incisions are made not from the side of the skin, but from the side of the nasal mucosa. A more painful, but also more reliable option in the absence of the necessary equipment or experience is the classic dacryocystorhinostomy through conventional access. The result that is being achieved is the restoration of the normal flow of the lacrimal fluid.