Topical mitomycin in endoscopic-assisted probing for the treatment of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction in older children

Purpose: Mitomycin C has been used in ophthalmic surgery to mitigate postoperative scarring. However, the outcomes of endoscopic-assisted probing for the treatment of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction with adjunctive mitomycin C in children remain unknown. Our study was aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of adjunctive application of mitomycin C after endoscopic-assisted probing for the treatment of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction in children. Methods: This is a retrospective chart review performed in a tertiary eye care hospital involving children with congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction, who underwent endoscopic-assisted probing from October 2013 to August 2015. We compared children who underwent endoscopic-assisted probing with mitomycin C (mitomycin C group) versus others who underwent endoscopic-assisted probing without mitomycin C (endoscopic-assisted probing group). The mitomycin C group received 0.2 mg/ml within 4 min to the nasolacrimal duct ostium using a cotton tip applicator immediately after probing. Probing was considered successful when patient complaints of tearing were reduced or the results of the dye disappearance test were normal. Demographic data, clinical features, and intraoperative and postoperative variables were correlated to the success rate. Results: The study sample comprised 68 lacrimal vies. The majority of children had bilateral obstruction and no previous history of probing. The mean age of the patients was approximately 4 years. Most obstructions were considered complex. The success rates were high in both groups (p>0.05). There were no adverse events related to the use of mitomycin C (p>0.05). Conclusions: Although mitomycin C has no adverse effects when applied to the opening of the nasolacrimal duct, its use after lacrimal probing for the treatment of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction does not improve the chance of success.