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Br J Ophthalmol 2002;86:357-358 doi:10.1136/bjo.86.3.357
  • Letter

Serious corneoscleral complications after pterygium excision with mitomycin C

  1. B Safianik,
  2. I Ben-Zion,
  3. H J Garzozi
  1. Department of Ophthalmology, Haemek Medical Center, Afula, Israel
  1. Correspondence to: Dr Boris Safianik, Department of Ophthalmology, Ha`emek Medical Center, Afula, Israel
  • Accepted 22 August 2001

The use of topical mitomycin C (MMC) to prevent recurrence after pterygium surgery is increasing since its introduction by Kunitomo and Mori in Japan, and its subsequent popularisation in the United States by Singh and associates.1 Low dose MMC (0.02%) twice daily for 5 days after the operation has been prospectively studied with long term follow up, and few serious side effects have been noted.2, 3 Intraoperative MMC appeared to be an effective and safe adjunctive treatment of primary pterygium excision.4

Case Reports

We retrospectively analysed three patients who presented at the Haemek Medical Central, Afula, Israel with scleral melting which developed after pterygium excision between October and November 2000, with intraoperative application of MMC (0.02% for 3 minutes). The MMC was washed out immediately with an abundant amount of balanced salt solution for at least 3 minutes. During the past 10 years we performed over 300 pterygium excisions with intraoperative use of MMC in Haemek Medical Center with three cases having serious complications.

Case 1 (Fig 1)

Figure 1

A previously healthy 50 year old man underwent recurrent pterygium excision of the right eye using a bare sclera technique with intraoperative application of MMC 0.02% for 3 minutes, having undergone pterygium excision with MMC 10 months earlier in …

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