[Whether external dacryocystorhinostomy will be abandoned].
External dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) has long been considered as the gold standard treatment for nasolacrimal duct obstruction or chronic dacryocystitis. Recently, however, endoscopic endonasal DCR is becoming increasingly popular with the development of endoscopic surgery technique in naso-orbit related diseases. Endoscopic DCR has the advantages of avoiding an external incision scar and simultaneously handling with nasal conditions. Nevertheless, the new method also has some disadvantages, for example, the lower long-term success rate, the high technical requirement, long learning curves, expensive equipment and the high cost of surgery. The choice of the surgical approaches should be based on the patient's condition, experience of the surgeon and available resources. After nearly a century of proven, external DCR still has incomparable superiority and should receive widespread attention and application.
Tongren Eye Center, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University; Beijing Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Key Lab, Beijing 100730, China. Email: ldmlily@x263.net.
Dongmei
D
Li
Tongren Eye Center, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University; Beijing Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Key Lab, Beijing 100730, China.
Jingwen
J
Ding
D003607:Dacryocystitis / Q000601:surgery*; D003608:Dacryocystorhinostomy / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D004724:Endoscopy / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans