title: Laser-assisted dacryocystorhinostomy: a viable treatment option?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Improvements in endoscopic instrumentation and evolving laser technologies have renewed interest in laser-assisted endonasal applications, and an increasing number of lacrimal surgeons have focused on laser-assisted approaches to dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR). The purpose of this review was to assess the clinical efficacy of laser-assisted DCR techniques with a particular focus on the endocanalicular approach and to describe various laser systems and their associated tissue effects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Recent studies of endocanalicular laser DCR suggest favorable success rates that are comparable with external and endonasal endoscopic DCR, although there is a shortage of robust, prospective, randomized studies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Recent evidence suggests that endocanalicular laser DCR is a well tolerated, viable treatment option for nasolacrimal duct obstruction in selected patients with favorable results and shorter operative times. More recent studies seem to suggest improvements in success rates compared with older studies, although additional, well designed, comparative studies are needed.
authors: Department of Ophthalmology, Cullen Eye Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
authors: Seongmu
authors: S
authors: Lee
authors: Michael T
authors: MT
authors: Yen
mesh_terms: D003608:Dacryocystorhinostomy / Q000379:methods*; D004724:Endoscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007767:Lacrimal Duct Obstruction / Q000503:physiopathology; D053685:Laser Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D018579:Patient Selection; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome