Cosmetic regional conjunctivectomy with postoperative mitomycin C application with or without bevacizumab injection

To evaluate the complications of cosmetic wide conjunctivectomy and postoperative topical mitomycin C application with or without bevacizumab injection.

Cross-sectional cohort study.

Medical records of 1713 consecutive subjects who received cosmetic wide conjunctivectomy plus postoperative topical mitomycin C by a single surgeon at a single center with or without bevacizumab injection from November 2007 to May 2010 were reviewed. A telephone interview was conducted with 557 of the subjects who could be contacted and agreed to participate in the study. Complications, recurrences, and patient satisfaction were the main outcome measures.

A total of 1713 consecutive patients underwent cosmetic wide conjunctivectomy to treat conjunctival hyperemia. Ocular diagnoses in the medical records at the time of surgery included hyperemia (8.8%), pterygium (14.0%), dry eye (3.5%), pinguecula (1.5%), and conjunctival disorder (23.3%). For the remaining 48.9% of subjects, the diagnosis was not mentioned, or the surgical procedure was for cosmetic purposes. Patients were followed for a mean of 10.9 months (range, 0-30.3 months). The overall complication rate was 82.9%, of which 55.6% were considered severe (fibrovascular conjunctival tissue proliferation, 43.8%; scleral thinning, 4.4%; scleral thinning with calcified plaques, 6.2%; intraocular pressure elevation, 13.1%; diplopia, 3.6%; and recurrence of hyperemic conjunctiva, 28.1%).

Cosmetic wide conjunctivectomy plus postoperative topical mitomycin C with or without bevacizumab injection has a high rate of complications and reoperations.