Preoperative Versus Intraoperative Subpterygial Mitomycin C Injection for Prevention of Pterygium Recurrence.

PURPOSE: To evaluate postoperative outcome and recurrence rate after primary pterygium excision using preoperative versus intraoperative subpterygial Mitomycin C (MMC) injection. METHODS: Eighty-three eyes with primary pterygium were divided into 2 groups. Group A (35 eyes) was operated upon with pterygium excision 5 min after subpterygial injection of 0.1 mL 0.015% MMC in the same operative setting. Group B (48 eyes) was operated upon with pterygium excision 1 month after subpterygial injection of the same amount and concentration of MMC as in group A. Pterygium regrowth over the cornea for 1 mm or more was considered as a recurrence. RESULTS: The mean follow-up was 30.66±4.48 months in group A and 29.5±4.3 months in group B. In group A, the reported recurrence rate was 5.7%, while it was 4.2% in group B. No serious postoperative complications were reported. There was no statistically significant difference between both groups regarding the recurrence rate as well as the complication rate. CONCLUSION: Both techniques proved to be effective in reducing the recurrence rate after excision of primary nasal pterygium with minimal postoperative complications, with no need of a second surgery for patients in group A.