Dacryocystitis is an inflammation of the lacrimal canal that occurs when the glands are for some reason impassable. The fluid from such a channel enters the sinuses and stagnates there, which leads to the accumulation and multiplication of pathogenic microorganisms, which, in turn, contribute to the onset of the inflammatory process.
With this disease, lacrimation constantly occurs, a swelling appears. If you press on the area of the lacrimal sac, purulent fluid begins to stand out.
In this article we will consider the features of such a disease as dacryocystitis in adults, the treatment of this pathology.
Causes
Such a disease occurs with the physiological pathology of the lacrimal glands, for example, if the lacrimal ducts have congenital narrowing. Sometimes they can be completely blocked.
Inflammation of the lacrimal sac can occur for the following reasons:
- sinus or eye injury;
- viral and bacterial infections;
- allergic reactions;
- metabolic disease;
- diabetes;
- inflammatory diseases of the nose, causing tissue swelling in the eye area;
- contact with foreign bodies ;
- work with chemicals harmful to the eyes;
- long stay in a very dusty room;
- decreased immunity;
- overheating or hypothermia of the body.
Quite often, dacryocystitis is diagnosed in newborns. This is explained by the fact that the lacrimal ducts in infants in the first months of life have structural features.
When the baby is in the womb, its lacrimal canals are covered by a membrane that breaks at the time of birth. But in some cases, the membrane persists for a very long time after birth, causing accumulation of lacrimal secretions and pathogenic microflora in the ocular canal.
In adults, dacryocystitis (a photo of the pathology is in medical reference books) is much less common, and women suffer from it more than men. This is due to the fact that the fair sex has a slightly different structure of the lacrimal ducts.
Symptoms of the acute form of the disease
Dacryocystitis has its own characteristics. Inflammation of the lacrimal sac, proceeding in an acute form, has the following symptoms:
- a swelling appears in the area of the lacrimal sac, and if it is squeezed, then pain occurs;
- swelling of the eye occurs , as a result of which the eyelids begin to swell, the palpebral fissure narrows, which prevents a person from seeing normally;
- strong redness appears in the area of the lacrimal duct;
- around the orbit of the eye there is severe pain of a aching character, which is replaced by acute, if you touch the inflamed area;
- body temperature rises;
- organism intoxication occurs - malaise, fatigue, weakness.
Symptoms of a chronic form of the disease
In the initial stage, dacryocystitis, the photo of which is not very nice to see, has a painful swelling in the area of the lacrimal duct. To the touch it is very dense, softens after a while. Redness begins to subside, and at the site of swelling there is an abscess, with a breakthrough of which inflammation also disappears. Instead of an abscess, a fistula is formed, and the contents of the lacrimal canal constantly begin to stand out from it.
The chronic form of dacryocystitis is manifested as follows:
- incessant lacrimation;
- with pressure on the lacrimal sac, the discharge intensifies;
- under a sick eye there is an oblong swelling;
- eyelids swell, swell, overflow with blood.
Treatment of acute form of dacryocystitis
If acute dacryocystitis has occurred in adults, its treatment should be stationary. Systemic vitamin therapy, UHF therapy is carried out, and dry heat is applied to the area of the lacrimal sac. With the formation of pus, it is necessary to open the abscess, after which the wound is washed with antiseptics. It can be hydrogen peroxide, a solution of dioxidine, furatsilina.
In the conjunctival sac, the doctor instills antibacterial drops or lays antimicrobial ointments. At the same time, systemic antibacterial therapy is carried out with drugs that have a wide spectrum of action (penicillins, cephalosporins, aminoglycosides).
Treatment of chronic dacryocystitis
If the acute form of the disease has turned into chronic dacryocystitis (in adults), the treatment is carried out mainly by the surgical method called “dacryocystorhinostomy”, with the help of which an additional message is formed between the lacrimal canal and the nasal cavity. This is necessary so that the pus stops accumulating and the outflow of fluid is normalized.
Sometimes patency of the nasolacrimal canal is restored with the help of augmentation or balloon dacryocystoplasty.
Bougienage is an operation (dacryocystitis is treated this way quite often), due to which the lacrimal canals are cleaned with a special tool, which leads to restoration of duct obstruction. This method is used for frequent relapses of the disease.
During balloon dacryocystoplasty, a probe with a balloon is inserted into the duct cavity, and when it is inflated, the internal lumen of the channel begins to expand.
In order not to form a purulent corneal ulcer, patients are forbidden to use contact persons, to apply blindfolds, to carry out any ophthalmological procedures that are associated with direct contact with the cornea.
Newborn treatment
If dacryocystitis occurs in newborns, then often alarmed parents begin to treat inflammation on their own, washing the baby's eyes with decoctions of various herbs, making tea lotions, acquiring special drops in the pharmacy that the pharmacist advised.
Such methods can bring results, but for a short time. After the cessation of treatment, the baby's eyes begin to water again, sometimes even pus is secreted. This is explained by the fact that the disease arises due to physiological pathology, expressed in obstruction of the lacrimal ducts, and it is impossible to eliminate it only with lotions and drops. Therefore, as soon as dacryocystitis of the eye arose, at its first signs, the baby should definitely be shown to the doctor.
If the child has such a disease, then they usually carry out special therapy, which consists in massage, the use of antibacterial drops and rinsing the eyes with disinfectant solutions.
Massage treatments
Only a doctor can recommend effective ways to eliminate dacryocystitis. One of these methods is lacrimal canal massage, which brings a truly guaranteed result. But he has one contraindication - a severe stage of the disease, which is characterized by the occurrence of extensive inflammatory processes. In this case, massage is strictly forbidden, since pus can get into the tissues that surround the lacrimal canals, leading to the formation of phlegmon.
The doctor teaches the technique of such a procedure. Massage begins with the contents being squeezed out of the lacrimal sac. In a solution of furatsilin, a swab is moistened and the pus that is released is removed. Massage of the lacrimal canal is best done before feeding.
Squeezing movements should not be too soft, but also not strong. Due to this effect on the lacrimal sac, the gelatin membrane is pushed into the channel. Massage is effective only for newborns; older babies no longer bring proper relief.
Output
If a pathology such as dacryocystitis (in adults) has arisen, treatment should be started as early as possible, since there is a high probability of various complications. Some can be very serious, leading to decreased vision. Newborns are most often prescribed massage. If it does not help, then a sounding is performed, the effectiveness of which is quite high, after which the baby will permanently get rid of this pathology.