Dystrophic calcification of the sclera following pterygium surgery with adjunctive beta-irradiation: Case report of the surgical management

• Main Author: Roland Höllhumer
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: AOSIS 2020-09-01
• Series: African Vision and Eye Health
• Subjects: pterygium; beta-irradiation; strontium-90; dystrophic calcification; scleritis; scleromalacia
• Online Access: https://avehjournal.org/index.php/aveh/article/view/566

The purpose of this article was to report a late complication of adjuvant beta-radiation after pterygium surgery. This is a case report of a 56-year-old black female patient who presented with an infectious scleritis associated with scleral necrosis and dystrophic calcification. She had undergone pterygium surgery with adjuvant beta-irradiation six years before. She was managed with topical antibiotics and patch graft, with a good outcome. Beta-radiation is associated with visually significant long-term complications and should be avoided. We recommend an excision with extended tenonectomy and free autograft as the procedure of choice.