canaliculitis
The canaliculum is a short channel that is in the inner angle of the eyelids and serves to The tear circulates and drains to the tear sac. Viral processes, germs and herpes simplex can cause an infection in the canaliculus and produce a tear canaliculitis.
Canaliculitis is the inflammation and infection of the canaliculum because of certain pathogens and is usually more common in the lower eyelid, although it can affect both channels at the same time (upper and lower). Chronic canalicular inflammation is rare, which is why it is often not diagnosed correctly.
canaliculitis
The canaliculum is a short channel that is in the inner angle of the eyelids and serves to The tear circulates and drains to the tear sac. Viral processes, germs and herpes simplex can cause an infection in the canaliculus and produce a tear canaliculitis.
Canaliculitis is the inflammation and infection of the canaliculum because of certain pathogens and is usually more common in the lower eyelid, although it can affect both channels at the same time (upper and lower). Chronic canalicular inflammation is rare, which is why it is often not diagnosed correctly.
What is canaliculitis?
The definition of canaliculitis explains that it is the inflammation of the canaliculus, a channel that is close to the internal angle of the Eyelids and that serves to drain tears into the lacrimal sac.
In most cases, this condition affects the lower eyelid canaliculus, but it can also affect the upper eyelid, therefore, canaliculitis can be unilateral or bilateral. This inflammation is very rare and usually affects adults over 50 years.
Depending on the evolution of canaliculitis, it can be chronicle o acute.
Main symptoms
The symptoms of tear canaliculitis are very annoying and the main one is the inflammation of the canaliculus that the affected patient notices through the blink of an eye or, simply, because he feels a bulky area in the affected eyelid.
Other symptoms of canaliculitis are:
- constant tearing and excessive.
- Secretion.
- Eye redness affected.
- Touch pain.
- El redness and pain are usually more pressing in the area closer to the nose.
How is it diagnosed
Canaliculitis is a very rare condition and its symptoms are very similar to those of the dacryocystitis, and this often means that the disease is not diagnosed correctly.
To diagnose canaliculitis, the oculoplastic ophthalmologist It is usually guided by the physical examination and the symptoms presented by the patient. However, to offer an accurate diagnosis it is necessary to perform a microbiological examination of the secretion, a dacryocistography and an ultrasound in which it is evidenced that the canaliculum is dilated and there is presence of dacryolites and diverticula.
On physical examination it is important to take into account certain factors that indicate that it is a canaliculitis and not a dacryocystitis.
The factors that differentiate a canaliculitis of dacryocystitis are:
- El tear point is red, expanded y edematous.
- La secretion comes from the canaliculus.
- They look themselves yellowish dacryolites.
- There is presence of bacilli are preventing tear spillage.
Causes that originate it
Canaliculitis is caused by canalicular infection who has been infected with pathogens or bacteria. It is usually the agent Actinomices Israelii the main responsible of this disease
Canaliculitis is also associated with viral infections such as herpes simplexfungal infections such as candida, propinebacterium, Enterobacter, nocardias and the species Aspergillus.
Treatment of lacrimal canaliculitis
The treatment of canaliculitis has as its main objective fight the inflammation of the canal, eliminating secretions and draining the clogged canal.
The use of hot packs can help deflate the eyelid and to stimulate the drainage of accumulated fluid, however, the ideal treatment to correct canaliculitis is surgical.
La Canaliculotomy is the surgery performed to treat tear canaliculitis, preserving the tear point and draining all the bacilli and dacryolites. To perform this procedure, local anesthesia is applied to the infected eye and a tear tube is placed inside the canal.
Then, a small incision is made in the chapter to drain all the content trapped in it and then proceed to suture with stitches.
The whole procedure is quite simple and does not represent a greater risk to the patient's health. The canalicotomy is a outpatient surgery and the patient can go home at the end of the procedure.
