Abstract
Purpose
To describe the clinical characteristics and management of a group of patients who had infection of the lacrimal gland ductules.
Methods
We performed a retrospective chart review of 12 patients who had infection of the lacrimal gland ductules and were managed at Saevit Eye Hospital from June 2010 to May 2012.
Results
The patients’ mean age was 31.8 ± 17.7 years, and 7 were male and 5 were female. Common symptoms were a painful, swelling mass with mucous discharge (8 eyes) and conjunctival injection (4 eyes) at the lateral canthal area. All pa-tients underwent surgical intervention by incision and curettage. Eleven patients (91.7%) had typical sulfur granule of acti-nomyces, and 8 patients (66.7%) had many cilia in the expressed debris from the ductule. All patients had resolution of symptoms after the procedure and showed no recurrence.
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Figure 1.
(A) Patient referred with painful lid swelling, persistent temporal conjunctival injection, and chronic mucopurulent dis-charge from the lacrimal gland ductule. (B) Many cilia in the expressed debris from the affected ductule.
![jkos-54-1001f1.tif](/upload/SynapseXML/0035jkos/thumb/jkos-54-1001f1.gif)
Figure 2.
Light microscopic photograph of expressed debris specimen shows (A) necrotic tissue debris consistent with dacryolith and cilia (HE stain, ×40) (B) Multiple foci of Actinomyces organisms (GMS stain, ×200).
![jkos-54-1001f2.tif](/upload/SynapseXML/0035jkos/thumb/jkos-54-1001f2.gif)
Table 1.
Demographics and clinical presentation and treatment of 12 cases of lacrimal gland ductulitis