Effect of basic fibroblast growth factors combined with tobramycin and dexamethasone on the incidence of corneal irritation symptoms and relapse rate in postoperative patients with pterygium

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effect of basic fibroblast growth factors combined with tobramycin and dexamethasone on the incidence of corneal irritation symptoms and relapse rate in postoperative patients with pterygium. Methods 122 cases of pterygium in our hospital from October 2013 to May 2016 were randomly divided into the observation group (n=61) and the control group (n=61). Both groups underwent surgical treatment. The control group was given eye drops of tobramycin and dexamethasone, and the observation group was given basic fibroblast growth factors on the basis of the control group. The corneal irritation symptoms (lacrimation, photophobia, pain, foreign body sensation) and the recovery condition (edema duration of grafts, time of conjunctival flap healing, eye comfort on the 3rd day after operation) were compared between the two groups. The patients were followed up for 1 year, and the relapse rate in the two groups were compared. Results (1) Corneal irritation symptoms: the incidences of lacrimation, photophobia, pain, foreign body sensation of the observation group were lower than those of the control group [34.43% (21/61) vs.59.02% (36/61), 31.15% (19/61) vs.63.93% (39/61), 21.31% (13/61) vs.52.46% (32/61), 37.70% (23/61) vs.67.21% (41/61)] (P<0.05). (2) Postoperative recovery: the edema duration of grafts and time of conjunctival flap healing of the observation group were shorter than those of the control group, and the eye comfort score on the 3rd day after operation was higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). (3) Relapse rate: 1 year after operation, the relapse rate of the observation group was 3.28% (2/61), that of the control group was 14.75% (9/61), with statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). Conclusion Basic fibroblast growth factors combined with tobramycin and dexamethasone in the treatment of postoperative patients with pterygium can relieve the postoperative corneal irritation symptoms, promote postoperative recovery in early stage, and effectively reduce the relapse rate of pterygium. Key words: Pterygium; Basic fibroblast growth factor; Tobramycin and dexamethasone; Corneal irritation symptoms; Relapse rate