Tear Drain Surgery (Lacrimal Surgery)

Tear duct blockage can occur in both children and adults, although the causes are often different. With most patients, the condition causes an excessive amount of tearing. Infection of the tear duct (dacryocystitis) is also sometimes involved.

• In children, the blockage can often be effectively managed with non-surgical treatments. When a non-surgical approaches fail, opening the drain using a simple procedure yields a very high success rate.

• In adults, blockage can be caused by an injury, infection, or from other causes. Treatment will depend on both the cause of the injury and the location of the blockage. Surgical management can include temporary stents, Jones tubes, or with minimal or non-incisional (endoscopic or endonasal) DCR procedures.

Symptoms

Tear duct blockage will normally causes two main symptoms, which include excessive tearing and tear sac infection.

• With excessive tearing, a pooling of tears in the eye can lead to blurred vision and irritation. In severe cases, tears may consistently run down the cheeks, requiring an almost constant wiping of the eyes.
• Tear sac infections will also range from being limited to severe conditions. Chromic infections will often cause tenderness in the inner corner of the eye, mild discomfort, and include a discharge similar to pink eye (conjunctivitis). An acute tear sac or tear duct infection can cause redness, swelling and extreme pain in the area between the eye and nose.