To perform a medical analysis of the contribution of sialendoscopy in the treatment of non-tumoral pathologies of the main salivary glands, in Reunion Island, a French overseas territory.

A multicenter retrospective observational study was conducted for an 8-year period, before and after introduction of sialendoscopy (2011–2014 and 2015–2018), following STROBE guidelines.

To compare populations treated before (period A) and after (period B) the introduction of sialendoscopy in terms of clinical characteristics, and analyze the characteristics of patients treated by sialendoscopy.

Two hundred and sixty-five patients were included: 74 in 2011–2014 and 191 in 2015–2018; 139 had sialendoscopy. Populations A and B were comparable except for the proportion of parotids treated (9% vs. 31%, respectively; P<0.0001), and smaller stones (11mm vs. 7.4mm, respectively; P=0.003). One hundred and ten pure sialendoscopies and 29 combined routes (20.8%) were performed: 63% submandibular and 37% parotid. Median age was 46 years. The M/F sex ratio was 0.96. Thirty-seven patients presented stenosis. There were 10 cases of papillary catheterization failure (7.1%), and 16 false routes or creation of false channels (11.5%), including 9 during the learning period. The rate of crossover to gland resection decreased: 10.45% for 2015–2016 and 5.56% for 2017–2018.

Although follow-up ranged between 12 and 55months (median, 30months), sialendoscopy appeared to be a useful and reliable technique, with a role in therapeutic strategy for the management of non-tumoral salivary pathologies in Reunion Island.