Academic Journal
AS-OCT assessment of limbal epithelial thickness at 12 months after pterygium surgery: a comparison of conjunctival limbal autograft and conjunctival flap techniques.
| Τίτλος: | AS-OCT assessment of limbal epithelial thickness at 12 months after pterygium surgery: a comparison of conjunctival limbal autograft and conjunctival flap techniques. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Küpeli Çınar A; Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey., Çınar AC; Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey. kadircancinar@gmail.com., Sakallıoğlu AK; Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey., Garip R; Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey., Güçlü H; Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey. |
| Πηγή: | International ophthalmology [Int Ophthalmol] 2026 Sep 07; Vol. 46 (1). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Sep 07. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article; Comparative Study |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Kluwer Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 7904294 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1573-2630 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01655701 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Int Ophthalmol Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Dordrecht : Kluwer Original Publication: The Hague, Junk. |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Tomography, Optical Coherence*/methods , Pterygium*/surgery , Pterygium*/diagnosis , Conjunctiva*/transplantation , Limbus Corneae*/pathology , Epithelium, Corneal*/pathology , Surgical Flaps*, Humans ; Female ; Retrospective Studies ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Follow-Up Studies ; Autografts ; Visual Acuity ; Transplantation, Autologous ; Aged ; Adult ; Time Factors ; Postoperative Period |
| Περίληψη: | Purpose: To compare postoperative limbal epithelial thickness (LET) measured by anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) following conjunctival limbal autograft (CLAU) and conjunctival flap (CF) surgery in patients with primary grade 3 pterygium. Methods: This retrospective comparative study included 42 patients with primary grade 3 pterygium who underwent either CLAU (n = 21) or CF (n = 21). At 12 months postoperatively, AS-OCT was used to measure LET together with peripheral and central corneal epithelial and stromal thicknesses. Corresponding healthy fellow eyes served as controls. Secondary outcomes included best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), operative duration, and recurrence. Between-group and within-group comparisons were performed using appropriate statistical tests. Results: Mean postoperative LET was 61.33 ± 2.41 µm in the CLAU group and 62.81 ± 5.86 µm in the CF group, with no significant difference between groups (p = 0.141). LET did not differ significantly between operated and fellow eyes in either group. Likewise, peripheral and central corneal epithelial and stromal thicknesses were comparable between operated and fellow eyes and showed no significant differences between surgical techniques. BCVA and recurrence rates were similar in both groups, whereas operative duration was significantly shorter in the CF group (23.90 ± 1.67 vs. 40.29 ± 2.98 min, p < 0.001). No intraoperative or postoperative complications or recurrences were observed during the 12-month follow-up. Conclusions: At the 12-month postoperative evaluation, CLAU and CF demonstrated similar AS-OCT-based limbal epithelial thickness and corneal structural measurements. Although CF required a significantly shorter operative time, these findings should not be interpreted as evidence of equivalence between the two techniques. Larger prospective studies with serial postoperative AS-OCT assessments are warranted. (© 2026. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations. Conflict of interest: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). Ethical approval: This study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the local Human Clinical Research and Ethics Committee with the approval code TÜTF-GOBAEK 2025/291. Consent for publication: Not applicable. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Anterior segment optical coherence tomography; Conjunctival flap; Conjunctival limbal autograft; Limbal epithelial thickness; Pterygium |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260907 Date Completed: 20260908 Latest Revision: 20261008 |
| Update Code: | 20261008 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10792-026-04266-6 |
| PMID: | 42706379 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1573-2630 |
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| DOI: | 10.1007/s10792-026-04266-6 |