Epidemiology of Chronic Dacryocystitis and Success Rate of External Dacryocystorhinostomy in Nepal

Abstract

PURPOSE: To study the epidemiology of chronic dacryocystitis and the success rate of external dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) in Nepal. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective descriptive and interventional case series. A total of 662 records of patients with chronic dacryocystitis due to nasolacrimal duct obstruction, who were treated by means of external DCR without bicanalicular silastic tube intubation, were studied. STATISTICS: Mean for age with standard deviation and confidence intervals were calculated. The significance of the difference in means was calculated using the unpaired t-test. RESULTS: Of 662 patients, 67.6% were female. The mean age of the patients was 27.4 +/- 13.7 years (SE = 0.53, 95% CI = 26.34-28.46). Chronic dacryocystitis due to nasolacrimal duct obstruction was found in 86 patients (13.0%) from the high hills (mean age = 35.3 +/- 11.4 years, 95% CI = 32.85-37.75), but most patients (576, 87.0%) were from the subtropical lowlands with a monsoon climate (mean age = 26.9 +/- 13.3 years, 95% CI = 25.8-28.0; p = < 0.01). An overall success rate of 88.6% (89.8% for high-hill patients and 87.4% for those from the lowlands) was obtained after DCR. CONCLUSION: Chronic dacryocystitis is more common in the subtropical plains of Nepal with a monsoon climate than in the high hills. It is predominantly found in pre-menopausal females. External DCR without bicanalicular silastic tube intubation is an effective method for treating chronic dacryocystitis due to NLDO in these patients.