Purpose: To describe the clinical features and management of a patient with
an extralacrimal dacryolith.
Methods: Case report.
Results: A 43-year-old woman remarked at a routine eye examination that a s
mall, firm mass located for several years on the right side of her nose had
recently become slightly larger. The mass had remained firm and nontender
during this enlargement. She explicitly denied having any past or current l
acrimal outflow problems. Surgical excision disclosed a mass external to th
e lacrimal sac and duct, adherent to its lateral wall. The histopathologic
features were consistent with a dacryolith surrounded by a chronic inflamma
tory reaction and no epithelial lining.
Conclusion: We presume that the dacryolith must have formed within the lacr
imal sac and then migrated laterally into the surrounding soft tissue.