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Lower pterygium recurrence rate observed with amniotic membrane vs. stem cell transplant
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CANCUN, Mexico — Treating pterygium using amniotic membrane results in a lower recurrence rate compared with limbal stem cell transplantation, according to a poster study presented here at the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology meeting.
"Prevention of recurrence in pterygium constitutes an important challenge for surgeons," the study authors wrote. "It is frequent that the pterygium returns in a more aggressive form."
Zaadia Pérez Parra, MD, and colleagues at the Instituto Cubano de Oftalmología compared the two treatments in a study involving 90 eyes of 60 patients with primary pterygium from grade 2 to grade 4.
The first group included 45 eyes of 30 patients treated with a limbal stem cell autograft in the conjunctiva. The second group included 45 eyes of 30 patients treated with amniotic membrane.
Investigators followed patients out to 12 months postop. They found that 4% of patients in the stem cell-treated group developed implant inflammation and 2% developed granuloma.
No patients in the amniotic membrane-treated group developed such complications, the authors reported. Patients treated with amniotic membrane also had a lower rate of recurrence, they noted.
"Primary pterygium surgery with an amniotic membrane graft is an excellent option due to the low frequency of the recurrence of the pterygium," the researchers wrote.