A Study of Reccurence of Pterygium in Maharashtra

Abstract

Background This study investigated the recurrence rates of primary pterygium following different surgical approaches, including conjunctival autografting alone, conjunctival autografting with intraoperative mitomycin C, and amniotic membrane grafting.  Methods In a retrospective cohort study of primary pterygium conducted from October 2022 to October 2024, 560 patients with an average age of 53.3 ± 14.1 years were included, with 94 cases undergoing surgery. Pterygium involving the cornea was present in 55% of cases. The overall recurrence rate for the three procedures was 17%, with an average time to recurrence of 14.2 ± 11.9 months, and 37% of recurrences occurred after the first year. Dry eye disease was the only significant risk factor for recurrence in both univariate (p = 0.021) and multivariate analysis (p = 0.026). The recurrence rates following conjunctival autografting with and without mitomycin C were 15.6% and 15.8%, respectively, while the rate following amniotic membrane grafting was twofold higher at 27% (OR= 2.02) compared to conjunctival autografting (15.8%).  Conclusions Dry eye disease was identified as the sole factor associated with pterygium recurrence in this study. The finding highlights the significance of extended post- operative monitoring, as over one-third of recurrences were detected after the first year. The slightly elevated recurrence rate following conjunctival grafting in our study, compared to existing literature, can be attributed to variances in study locations, demographics, and follow- up durations.