The culture study of removed silicone tubes after lacrimal surgery.

1. Dae-Gyu Lee¹
2. Min Ahn²

¹Jeju National University, College of Medicine,South Korea
²Chonbuk National University Hospital, Chonbuk National University Medical School,South Korea

Purpose
This study investigated the result of culture of silicone tubes after lacrimal sugery, and the identification of results according to operation type, clinical features and detailed locations of silicone tubes.

Methods
The subjects of this study were 54 eyes of 34 patients operated after lacrimal surgery between May 2009 and December 2009. The removed silicone tubes were divided into the parts of canalculi, sac, nasolacrimal duct, nasal cavity according to insertion state. And the culture was performed using them. Lacrimal surgery were silicone tube intubation (SI) and dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) with SI.

Results
The culture positive rate was significant higher in nasolacrimal duct, and especially in more than 6 months insertion duration (p=0.007). SI was most common operation method but in woman relatively higher ratio of DCR with SI than others. In total patients according to insertion site, culture rate was no differentiation. The common species of cultured bacteria were S. epidermis, MRSA, Candida Species, S. maltophilia, S. aureus, P. aureosinosa, etc. Through lacrimal system (sac, nasolacrimalduct, nasal cavity) culture positive rate was higher in man patient than in woman (p=0.06,p=0.036,p=0.02).

Conclusions
Lacrimal surgery demand the utmost attention because infectional complication, especially in man patient who was done tube removal after surgery more than 6 months.