subject: Side Effects Of Pinguecula Removal [print this page] Pinguecula is some form of eye lesion - and so is pterygium. The two diseases are so alike they are difficult to tell apart.
A pinguecula (plural, pingueculae) is a thickening along parts of the sclera (the white area) of the eye near its borders with the cornea. The lesion is raised slightly and is coloured whitish to yellowish. The pinguecula commonly grows in the palpebral fissure (the surface area dividing the upper and lower eyelids). Pinguecula appears more opaque than healthy conjunctiva (the mucous membrane coating the inner eyelid surface and the white of the eye), has a oily appearance, and has greater chances of being located on the nose (rather than the ear) side of the eye.
Pterygium (plural, pterygia) is a triangular, wing-like formation that actually encroaches onto the cornea, usually near the nose and in the space continuous with the conjunctiva. It can be observed by its head - a raised, whitish, opaque tissue on the cornea. Though ordinarily not vision-threatening, severe pterygium can inflict corneal blindness.
They disorders are similar in cellular/tissue structures. A pinguecula is differentiated from a pterygium by its position relative to the cornea and the horizontal orientation of its damaged tissues. However, a pinguecula can be considered a pterygium when it trespasses into the cornea.
Causes
The causes of pinguecula and pterygium are obscure. There is solid indication, however, that both diseases are closely linked with repeated, long-term exposure to both blue and ultraviolet light. It is not coincidental that they are frequently situated around the apex of the cornea, which is the area most bared to sunlight. The cornea and conjunctiva suffer cellular damage from exposure to ultraviolet radiation, especially when levels of the beneficial antioxidants glutathione and astaxanthin are reduced.
Pinguecula is also linked with increasing age. Pingueculae are present in most eyes by age 70 and in nearly all eyes by age 80. This is probably due to progressive deterioration of the conjunctiva, as a result of aging, a history of inflammations, continuous irritation, and dryness of the eyes.
Pterygium has been inextricably linked with patients living at latitudes of 37 degrees north and south of the equator - which appears to boost the correlation with UV-light exposure. Some links to genetic factors have been suggested. Another cause is human papilloma virus infection.
Similar to pinguecula, pterygium is suspected to originate from susceptibility to dust, low humidity (which can cause rapid tear evaporation and dry eyes), and imperceptibly fine abrasions from suspended particles in the air such as smoke and sand. Dry eye symptoms may also be confounding factors.
Though pterygium is often understood as a chronic degenerative disorder, some of its indicative characteristics indicate a proliferative growth disorder - similar to some benign tumours. After surgical removal, pterygia have presented a powerful and invasive tendency to return.
Symptoms
Pingueculae frequently do not make trouble . You may sense a foreign body feeling from an irritated pinguecula. Severely dry conditions and other environmental factors can induce inflammation and enlargement.
You ordinarily will not perceive any manifestations from pterygium. But swollen and irritated pterygia may elicit foreign body sensation and some cosmetic uneasiness about how your eyes look. Enlarged or more advanced pterygia, however, can actuate astigmatism as the lesion puts pressure on your cornea.
Treatment
Swelling in the pinguecula (called pingueculitis) is very receptive to treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or, if necessary, topical corticosteroids. The corollary dry eye manifestations can be addressed with eye drops. If you intend to go outdoors, it will be useful to shield your eyes from sunlight with an effective set of sunglasses. Surgical removal of a pinguecula is rarely necessary.
A modestly-sized but enlarged pterygium may be addressed by corticosteroid ointments to bring down the swelling. Dryness in the eye may be pacified with prescription eye drops.
Large pterygia may be better neutralised by surgical excision. The removal procedure is simple, but preventing re-emergence is not simple. Due to its vigorous tendency to return, your doctor's treatment scheme may be similar to anticancer strategies, such as wide surgical removal to excise all possible pterygium-affected tissues, radioactive therapy, and chemotherapy with mitomycin C, an anticancer compound.
