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Case Reports
. 2024 Nov 20;16(11):e74060.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.74060. eCollection 2024 Nov.

Canaliculops Mimicking Canaliculitis

Affiliations
Case Reports

Canaliculops Mimicking Canaliculitis

Chrisha Faye T Habaluyas et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Canaliculops is a rare case of a medial canthal mass due to a non-infectious dilation of the canaliculus and easily mimics canaliculitis with canalicular dilation. We report a case of a 68-year-old woman with a five-year history of progressive swelling of the right upper eyelid. The patient was previously diagnosed with canaliculitis at other clinics and had a history of diabetes mellitus. A purplish-red cystic lesion in the right upper eyelid, medial to the punctum, was noted. However, the lesion was non-tender. Dacryoendoscopic examination showed an expanded right upper horizontal canaliculus with minor inflammatory changes and without intracanalicular granulation tissue. Right common canaliculus obstruction was managed with dacryoendoscopic probing and lacrimal tube insertion. Cytodiagnostic examination of accumulated fluid in the dilated lacrimal canaliculus showed a few foam and inflammatory cells. At three-month follow-up, the lacrimal tube was removed, and no recurrence of epiphora was noted.

Keywords: canaliculitis; canaliculops; common canalicular obstruction; dacryoendoscopy; intracanalicular granulation tissue.

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Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Consent for treatment and open access publication was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Aichi Medical University Hospital issued approval None. This study protocol was reviewed and the need for approval was waived by the institutional review board of our university hospital because this was a retrospective case report. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Facial photographs and dacryoendoscopic images
(A) A face photo was taken during the initial examination, showing a purplish-red cystic lesion in the right medial canthal region. (B) A slit-lamp examination showed obstruction of the right upper punctum. Dacryoendoscopic examination showed dilation of the horizontal canaliculus without granulation tissue (C) and common canalicular obstruction (D). (E) A face photo taken three months after surgery showed deflation of the lesion. (F) A slit-lamp examination showed a patent right upper punctum (arrow).

References

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