Conjunctival Flaps: A Case Series and Review of the Literature

The purpose of this study was to examine the outcomes of conjunctival flaps performed at our institution.

The medical records of all patients who underwent a total or partial conjunctival flap surgery over the course of a 6-year period from 2010 to 2015 were reviewed to identify the ocular diagnoses and perform a retrospective review of the preoperative and postoperative course.

Thirty-five patients received a conjunctival flap during the 6-year period, 20 partial flaps and 15 total flaps. Infectious keratitis or corneal ulceration accounted for 25 (71.4%) of the cases. The remaining flaps were performed for corneal perforation, graft rejection, bullous keratopathy, and secondary corneal edema. Seven patients had recession of their flap postoperatively, and 14 went on to have further surgical intervention. Conjunctival flap surgery successfully stabilized the patient's ocular surface in 97.1% of the cases.

Conjunctival flap surgery is an important and useful surgical option in the treatment of ocular surface disease, especially recalcitrant infectious keratitis and corneal ulcers.