Analysis of the histopathological results of patients submitted to pterygium excision

Abstract

Purpose: The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of premalignant and malignant lesions in patients clinically diagnosed with pterygium who underwent excision procedures performed by 1st-year residents in ophthalmology at a teaching hospital between 2018 and 2021.

Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted on 274 medical records of patients diagnosed with pterygium who underwent excision procedures from 2018 to 2021 at Hospital PUC-Campinas in Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. Fifty-four medical records were excluded due to missing essential data. Among the 220 records included for analysis, 239 histopathological results were considered, as 19 patients underwent pterygium excision in both eyes.

Results: Out of 239 histopathological results analyzed, 236 (98.74%) were compatible with pterygium, 2 (0.8%) with epithelial dysplasia, and 1 (0.4%) with actinic keratosis.

Conclusion: A histopathological study is essential for the accurate differential diagnosis of pterygium. Although the frequency of ocular surface squamous neoplasia is low, premalignant and malignant lesions must be ruled out. Correct diagnosis must be made to allow proper follow-up of the patients and prevent life-threatening lesions.