title: Pterygium surgery using the principle of contact inhibition and a limbal transplanted pedicle conjunctival strip.
abstract: We have devised a new type of pterygium surgery, based on the principle of biological contact inhibition, involving the use of a 0.5-millimeter-wide pedicle autoconjunctival strip placed at the corneal limbus. Over a period of 2 years, the procedure has been performed in 56 eyes of 52 patients, 39 to 74 years old (mean, 57 +/- 9 years), with primary pterygium. After an average follow up of 34 +/- 6 months (range, 20 to 40 months), the pterygium recurred in six (10.7%) of the 56 eyes. There were no other significant postoperative complications. Although our method has the disadvantages of being somewhat complicated and involving a fair amount of suturing, the relatively low rate of recurrence achieved is encouraging.
authors.affiliation: Hara Eye Hospital, Utsunomiya, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hara
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shoji
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hara
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Obara
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003228:Conjunctiva / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation*; D003260:Contact Inhibition; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016850:Limbus Corneae / Q000166:cytology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011625:Pterygium / Q000601:surgery*; D012008:Recurrence; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous