The expression of growth factors in ophthalmic pterygium and phenotypically normal conjunctiva was examined and correlated with the clinical findings. Fifteen specimens of ophthalmic pterygia and 8 specimens of phenotypically normal conjunctiva were examined. Total RNA was extracted from all specimens and mRNA levels for transforming growth factor (TGFB1), vascular endothelial growth factor (VE...

Pterygium is characterized by the thickening of the bulbar conjunctiva and the invasion of the cornea from the sclerocorneal limbus to the central portion of the cornea. Pterygium produces corneal deformation, which extends toward the central portion of the cornea. The visual disorders depend on the corneal extent. The treatment goal is the removal of the corneal and conjunctival portion of the...

PURPOSE To determine if a pterygium surgical procedure consisting of minimal conjunctival removal, excision of the hypertrophic subconjunctival fibrovascular tissue, application of mitomycin 0.25 mg/mL for 1 minute combined with temporary nasal tarsorrhaphy, and use of postoperative dexamethasone/antibiotic drops achieves the following: safely simplifies pterygium removal, controls the early si...

AIM Treatment of recurrent pterygium associated with symblepharon requires both suppression of fibrosis and reconstruction of limbal barrier. To achieve this, human amniotic membrane was transplanted and limbal autografts performed. METHODS Four patients with severe symblepharon resulting from multiple surgeries for pterygium were treated. Human amniotic membrane was obtained at caesarean sec...

PURPOSE To investigate the safety and efficacy of intraoperative infiltration of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) as an adjuvant drug in pterygium treatment. METHODS Of 125 consecutive patients, 125 eyes with primary and recurrent pterygium underwent pterygium excision with intraoperative 5-FU (25 mg/mL) infiltration. The superior and inferior conjunctiva was approximated to cover the scleral bed and 0....

Pterygium is characterized by an elastic degeneration of the conjunctiva that extends across the limbos and invades the cornea. The recurrence rate is varied from 25-80% after primary closure to 6% with free conjunctival and Iimbal grafts. Several adjunctive therapies have been investigated for recurrent pte¬rygium. This article presents a 52-year-old athletic man who was seen for evaluation of...

PURPOSE To evaluate fibroblast proliferation activity of normal Tenon's capsule and of recurrent pterygia exposed in vitro to tacrolimus (FK506). METHODS A randomized prospective study was performed with 8 samples of recurrent pterygia and 6 samples of normal Tenon's capsule from the same patient with pterygium at the Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu - UNESP. The samples were cultivated and ...

PURPOSE To evaluate the effectiveness of mitomycin C (MMC) in preventing recurrence of pterygium following conjunctival autograft transplantation (CAT). Ki-67 antigen to evaluate epithelial cell proliferation and fibroblast nuclear kariometry were used to assist treatment evaluation. METHODS Twenty-nine patients with recurrent pterygium were divided into three groups: Group (G) 1--CAT and pla...

PURPOSE Little is known about DNA damage in human pterygium, and no data about DNA damage involvement as a potential angiogenic factor are available. We studied, with immunohistochemistry, the presence and localization of thymine dimers in the epithelial and stromal components of the human primary pterygium and its recurrences with a special emphasis on the vascular network and its interactions...