title: Diagnosis of lacrimal canalicular diseases using ultrasound biomicroscopy: a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the application of ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) in the examination of lacrimal canalicular diseases, and to investigate UBM image characteristics of lacrimal canaliculi in disease states.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty cases (63 eyes, 69 canaliculi) of lacrimal canalicular diseases were enrolled that included 32 patients (32 eyes, 32 canaliculi) with chronic lacrimal canaliculitis, 18 patients (18 eyes, 18 canaliculi) with previous lacrimal canalicular laceration, 9 patients (12 eyes, 18 canaliculi) with congenital absence of lacrimal puncta and canaliculi, and 1 case (1 eye, 1 canaliculus) of canalicular mass. The patients were examined using UBM, and disease-specific features of the UBM images were noted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  UBM imaging of lacrimal canaliculi in chronic canaliculitis patients showed obvious ectasia of the lacrimal canalicular lumen. Dot-like moderate echoic signals were detected on some ectatic lumina of the lacrimal canaliculus. Some lumen-like structures of the lower lacrimal canaliculus were observed in 2 (2 eyes, 2 canaliculi) of the 9 patients (12 eyes, 18 canaliculi) with congenital absence of the lacrimal canaliculus. Of the 18 patients (18 eyes, 18 canaliculi) with previous lacrimal canalicular laceration, the lacerated end on the nasal side of the lacrimal canaliculus was detected only in 14 patients (14 eyes, 14 canaliculi).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  UBM can be used to evaluate lacrimal canalicular diseases and can provide an imaging basis for the diagnosis of lacrimal canalicular diseases.
authors.affiliation: Lacrimal Center of Ophthalmology, Armed Police General Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Hai
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Lacrimal Center of Ophthalmology, Armed Police General Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Li-Ping
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Lacrimal Center of Ophthalmology, Armed Police General Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Cui
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Lacrimal Center of Ophthalmology, Armed Police General Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Lacrimal Center of Ophthalmology, Armed Police General Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bai
keywords: congenital absence of canaliculus; lacrimal canalicular calculus; lacrimal canaliculus; previous canalicular laceration; ultrasound biomicroscopy