External dacryocystorhinostomy. A prospective study comparing the size of the operative and healed ostium.

This study compares the size of the operative anastomosis with the size of the healed intranasal ostium resulting from 22 external dacryocystorhinostomies. The area of the healed intranasal ostium was approximately 2% of the area of the surgical anastomosis. No correlation was found between the size of the surgical anastomosis and the size of the healed ostium. In all cases, excellent functional results were obtained, regardless of the size of the healed ostium. This study suggests the size of the surgical anastomosis is not directly related to the success of the procedure, although it must be large enough to technically perform the procedure.