COMPARISION OF CONJUNCTIVAL LIMBAL AUTOGRAFT AND AMNIOTIC MEMBRANE GRAFT FOR PTERYGIUM EXCISION

Introduction: Pterygium is a common ocular condition occurring in tropical countries like India.It can cause signicant visual disturbance if left untreated.Recurrence of pterygium post surgery is undesirable but one of the common complications.This study was undertaken to compare two commonly used surgical techniques for pterygium excision. : To compare the efcacy and recurrence rates of Amniotic Membr Aim ane Graft(AMG) and Conjunctival Limbal Autograft(CLAG) after the excision of primary pterygium. A prospective,compa Methods: rative, interventional study was conducted from March 2024 to August 2024 in the Department of Ophthalmology, Gayatri Vidya Parishad Institute Of Health Care And Medical Technology, Marikavalasa, Visakhapatnam. 60 eyes of 60 patients underwent primary pterygium excision followed by grafting with CLAG(n=30) or AMG(n=30).They were followed up 6 months post operatively for recurrence and other complications. Results: 18 males and 42 females were operated with majority falling in 40+/-11 age group.Pterygium is present nasally in 55(91.7%) cases and temporally in 5(8.3%) cases.Most of the patients(n=33) presented with Grade 2 pterygium (55%). Recurrence was seen in 6 cases following AMG(20%) and in 2 cases after CLAG(6.7%).Other complications included graft retraction in 3 cases of CLAG, pyogenic granuloma in 2 cases of CLAG and 1 case of AMG, epithelial inclusion cyst in 1 case each of AMG and CLAG, symblepharon in 1 case of AMG. Amniotic Conclusion: membrane graft had a higher recurrence rate than conjunctival limbal autograft in the management of primary pterygium but the differrence was not statistically signicant.AMG is useful in advanced cases with bilateral heads,to preserve conjunctiva for future glaucoma surgeries.