The Australian Pterygium Centre

1. Do you need to remove your pterygium?

This is completely up to you. Pterygium is not cancerous, nor can it cause any other disease if it remains untreated. The rate at which your pterygium will continue to grow is impossible to predict. Only opt in for surgery if you feel discomfort or you do not like the look of it.

2. What is the best practice for pterygium removal?

The critical constituent of pterygium surgery, in order to prevent regrowth/recurrence, is the removal of its root.

3. What can you expect from best practice surgery?

During Best Practice surgery you should be awake but, importantly, unable to see or feel the procedure. It requires a graft taken from the eye with the pterygium, removal of pterygium from the root to ensure it does not grow back, sutures with disposable stitches, and then a 2-week post operation recovery time.

4. Cost of the surgery

The Australian Medical Association prohibits surgeons from publishing their prices, as well as specialists discussing prices with one another. We apologise for any inconvenience, but you'll need to contact one of our Partners for Pterygium to receive more information regarding the price.

5. What recurrence rate should you accept by your surgeon?

Due to the fact there is always a risk the pterygium will return/recur after surgery, you should carefully consider your surgeon's risk statistics.

6. Risks of developing pterygium - Family History

Pterygium is not known to be genetic. If your eyes have been exposed to the sun in the first 10 years of your life, you have a 1 in 10 chance at developing a pterygium.

If you lived in Queensland as a child you are 40x more likely to develop pterygium than your cousins in Victoria.

7. Prevention

Hats, sunglasses and shade are critical to the prevention of pterygium. Just as our skin is vulnerable to the sun, so too are our eyes. Protect your children's eyes as soon as possible to avoid pterygium growth in their eyes.