Pterygium Surgery in Kyle, TX
A pterygium is a fleshy growth on the white of the eye that can spread onto the cornea. When it causes irritation, blurs your vision, or keeps growing, Dr. Plummer can remove it surgically.
What Is Pterygium Surgery?
A pterygium, sometimes called surfer's eye, is a wedge shaped growth of tissue that usually starts on the white of the eye near the nose and can extend onto the cornea. It is linked to sun, wind and dust exposure, which makes it common in Texas.
Small pterygia that cause no symptoms are often watched, with lubricating drops and sun protection. Surgery is recommended when the growth causes ongoing redness or irritation, distorts or blurs vision, interferes with contact lens wear, or is clearly growing toward the center of the cornea.
Pterygium surgery is an outpatient procedure in which Dr. Plummer removes the growth and repairs the surface of the eye. Modern techniques usually cover the treated area with a thin graft of the patient's own surface tissue, which lowers the chance of the pterygium growing back. Dr. Plummer reviews the approach he recommends for your eye at your consultation.
You May Benefit from Pterygium Surgery If:
- The growth is extending onto the cornea or toward your line of sight
- Your vision is blurred or distorted, including new astigmatism
- You have ongoing redness, burning or a gritty feeling that drops do not relieve
- The growth keeps getting larger
- It interferes with contact lens wear
- You are bothered by how it looks
What to Expect
- Evaluation and measurement of the pterygium and its effect on your vision
- Outpatient surgical removal by Dr. Plummer
- Repair of the eye surface to reduce the chance of regrowth
- Follow-up visits to monitor healing
- Guidance on sun and dust protection to help prevent recurrence
Benefits
Relief from Irritation
Removing the growth usually ends the chronic redness and gritty feeling it caused.
Protecting Your Vision
Removing a pterygium before it reaches the center of the cornea helps protect clear vision.
Lower Regrowth Risk
Modern surface repair techniques reduce the chance the growth returns.
Close to Home
Consultation, surgery planning and follow-up visits with Dr. Plummer in Kyle.
What to Expect
Consultation
Dr. Plummer examines the growth, measures how far it extends onto the cornea, and checks whether it is affecting your vision. If surgery is a good choice, he explains the procedure and what recovery involves.
Surgery Day
The procedure is done as an outpatient with numbing medicine, so you go home the same day. You will wear a patch or shield at first.
Recovery
Expect some redness, a scratchy feeling and light sensitivity for the first week or two. You will use prescription drops and return for follow-up visits so Dr. Plummer can check healing.
Long Term
Wearing sunglasses and protecting your eyes from wind and dust helps keep a pterygium from coming back.
Common Questions About Pterygium Surgery
Is pterygium surgery painful?
The eye is numbed for the procedure. Afterward, a scratchy or sore feeling for several days is common and is managed with drops and over the counter pain relief as directed.
Can a pterygium come back?
It can. Modern techniques that repair the eye surface after removal lower the risk, and protecting your eyes from sun, wind and dust afterward helps too.
Does insurance cover pterygium surgery?
Insurance often covers removal when the pterygium causes symptoms or affects vision. Our office can help you check your coverage.
What is the difference between a pterygium and a pinguecula?
Both are growths on the white of the eye linked to sun exposure. A pinguecula stays on the white of the eye, while a pterygium grows onto the cornea and is the one that may need surgery.
Concerned About a Growth on Your Eye?
Schedule a pterygium evaluation with Dr. Plummer.
Schedule Your Consultation