Experience of the First Three Years of Independent Practice Following Surgical Training: Time Taken and Long-Term Outcomes of Powered Endoscopic Dacryocystorhinostomy

PurposeTo describe the changes in the time taken and the long-term outcomes of powered endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy (PEnDCR) performed by a freshly trained surgeon in the first three years following the surgical training.MethodsA retrospective interventional analysis was performed on all patients who underwent a primary or a revision PEnDCR from October 2016 to February 2020. Data obtained include demographics, presentation, previous interventions, pre-operative endoscopy findings, intra-operative findings, post-operative complications, and outcomes. Intra-operative features like the Boezaart surgical field scale, adjunctive endonasal procedures, and time taken for the procedure were noted. A minimum follow-up of 12 months was considered for final analysis. Statistical analysis was performed using software R (v 4.1.2).ResultsA total of 159 eyes of 155 patients underwent PEnDCR, of which 141 eyes were primary surgeries. The mean age was 64.28 years, with M:F ratio being 1:2.5. The number of cases performed per year steadily increased after the first year, and so was the case with adjunctive endonasal procedures. The mean procedure time showed an average reduction by 10.80 and 12.81 minutes for surgeries with and without adjunctive endonasal procedures (p < .001). The majority (77.3%, 123/159) of the intra-operative fields were classified as Grade 3 on the Boezaart scale. The practice of post-operative mitomycin C use significantly and steadily reduced over the three years (p < .001). Bleeding and granuloma formation were the common undesirable post-operative findings and showed a significant (p < .001) decline beyond the first year. The anatomical and functional success were (96.18%, 91.72%), (95.71%, 92.14%), and (96.16%, 91.94%), respectively, at 12, 24 and 36 months follow up.ConclusionSeveral intra-operative and post-operative parameters of PEnDCR patients showed improvement beyond the first year of independent practice. The success rates were well-maintained in the long term.