Pterygium
Pterygium or surfer’s eye is a triangular tissue that extends from white of the eye (conjunctiva) to the black of the eye (cornea). This lesion is due to the benign growth of transplanted tissue and conjunctival veins. The pterygium usually develops as a white on the conjunctiva, which gradually grows into the cornea. Because of the large number of veins, pterygium is usually pink or red. Pterygium can sometimes become inflamed, causing burning, itching, and tearing. It sometimes grows extensively and gets onto the middle of cornea and blocks vision; In addition, even smaller pterygia can cause astigmatism and blurry vision by changing the shape of the cornea.
Prevention of pterygium
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is effective in producing/causing pterygium, so it is recommended that people who live in sunny places and who are exposed to the sun for a long time wear a hat and sunglasses. High winds and dust may also be effective in causing pterygium by irritating the eye.
Usually in people with pterygium, getting water in the eyes (when washing hands and face or bathing) causes eye irritation, burning and redness in the eyes. Therefore, these people should be careful not to get water into their eyes as much as possible.
Some patients want to get rid of pterygium by long-term use of conventional artificial tears and medications such as betamethasone, which we recommend that artificial tears, especially if used more than four times a day, may aggravate pterygium development. Prolonged use of various types of ophthalmic steroid drugs such as betamethasone and hydrocortisone not only has no preventative effects, but they can also cause other side effects, however it may be recommended for up to three months after pterygium surgery.
Treatment of pterygium
If the pterygium is small and does not become cosmetically unpleasant and does not cause redness and irritation in the eyes, no special treatment is needed, but if it occasionally becomes inflamed and causes burning and red eyes, repeated use of artificial tears may relieve symptoms. In cases where pterygium causes extreme inflammation, an ophthalmologist may recommend a course of treatment with steroid eye drops or other anti-inflammatory eye drops.
Larger pterygia that are cosmetically significant or cause blurred vision with astigmatism can be treated with pterygium surgery; however, if it is simply removed there is a high risk of pterygium recurrence, especially in young people and those with inflamed pterygium; in half of the cases recurrence is found. In these cases in addition to pterygium removal, it is also advisable to use complementary techniques, such as conjunctival transplantation or use certain medications (e.g. Mitomycin) during the surgery. Very large pterygia that affect the middle of the cornea, in addition to the above mentioned measures, a partial thickness corneal transplant may also be needed to correct the shape of the cornea. It should be noted that some eye tumors may initially be mistaken for pterygium. Therefore, in cases where pterygium develops rapidly or recurs frequently, it is important to consult an ophthalmologist.