Commensal bacteria play an important role in the formation of the immune system but their role in the maintenance of immune homeostasis at the ocular surface and lacrimal gland remains poorly understood. This study investigated the eye and lacrimal gland phenotype in germ-free and conventional C57BL/6J mice. Our results showed that germ-free mice had significantly greater corneal barrier disrup...

PURPOSE The aim of this study is to present a surgical technique used to treat epiphora secondary to difficult cases of lacrimal pathway obstruction after fractures, previous surgery or anatomic abnormalities. METHODS From January 2001 to December 2002 we treated 27 patients with complicated lacrimal pathway obstruction secondary to fractures (10 cases), previous nasal surgery (4 cases), fail...

OBJECTIVES Multiple treatment options exist for management of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the lacrimal gland. Our objective was to perform an analysis of outcomes in a cohort of patients with adenoid cystic carcinoma of the lacrimal gland treated identically with an orbitocranial approach. METHODS We performed a retrospective review of 7 consecutive patients who presented to a tertiary care a...

OBJECTIVE To study electrical stimulation of the lacrimal gland and afferent nerves for enhanced tear secretion, as a potential treatment for dry eye disease. We investigate the response pathways and electrical parameters to safely maximize tear secretion. APPROACH We evaluated the tear response to electrical stimulation of the lacrimal gland and afferent nerves in isofluorane-anesthetized ra...

PURPOSE To study the microsurgical anatomy of the lacrimal drainage system and to provide anatomical evidence for transnasal endoscopic lacrimal drainage system bypass surgery by autogenous tissue grafting. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 20 Chinese adult cadaveric heads in 10% formaldehyde, comprising 40 lacrimal ducts were used. The middle third section of the specimens were examined for t...

Feature selection methods, as a preprocessing step to machine learning, are effective in reducing dimensionality, removing irrelevant data, increasing learning accuracy, and improving result comprehensibility. However, the recent increase of dimensionality of data poses a severe challenge to many existing feature selection methods with respect to the efficiency and effectiveness. In this work, ...

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of a common canalicular entrance in the lacrimal sac and to investigate the anatomy of the canalicular/lacrimal sac junction with direct visualization using a novel cadaveric dissection technique. METHODS Preserved cadavers were dissected to allow direct visualization of the canalicular entrance(s) to the lumen of the lacrima...

Lacrimal sac diverticulum is a rare condition, and its various symptoms complicate differential diagnosis. We present cases of a peculiar type of lacrimal diverticulum. A 5-year-old girl and a 50-year-old woman presented with a protruding mass inferior to the medial canthus. Each lacrimal system was patent to irrigation. The masses compressed and distorted the lacrimal passage and had no appare...

OBJECTIVE To optimize the approach to the lacrimal sac during intranasal dacryocystorhinostomy. DESIGN Microscopic measurement of anatomical landmarks in cadaver sagittal head sections. SETTING The anatomy department of a large university hospital. PARTICIPANTS Twenty adult cadaver sagittal head sections (12 right and 8 left) fixed with 10% formaldehyde solution were evaluated. INTERVEN...

Purpose: To present a rare case of Primary Lacrimal Sac Melanoma, and review all reports of this condition in the literature to date. Methods: In this review the clinical characteristics, presenting symptoms, treatment and morbidity of all patients with lacrimal sac melanoma reported in the literature from 1926 to the present. We have also discussed new approaches available for adjuvant radioth...