Eye
Conjunctiva
Other nonneoplastic
Pinguecula
Author: Deepali Jain, M.D.
Last author update: 1 February 2013
Last staff update: 26 June 2020
Copyright: 2002-2024, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed Search: Pinguecula [title]
Table of Contents
Definition / general | Treatment | Gross description | Microscopic (histologic) description | Microscopic (histologic) imagesCite this page: Jain D. Pinguecula. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/eyepinguecula.html. Accessed December 26th, 2024.
Definition / general
- Common bilateral degenerative process associated with sun damage and age; also advanced glycation end products (Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol 2006;244:104) and diabetes mellitus (Cornea 2012;31:264)
- Not progressive
- Usually not biopsied
- May cause uneven distribution of tear film, leading to focal dehydration and saucer like depression in corneal tissue ("dellen"); associated with conjunctivochalasis (Acta Ophthalmol 2012;90:773) and contact lens induced subconjunctial hemorrhage (Am J Ophthalmol 2010;150:656)
Treatment
- Excision for cosmetic reasons or to remove mild irritation; otherwise no treatment
Gross description
- Elevated yellow lesion (due to solar elastosis) in bulbar conjunctiva in interpalpebral region near nasal limbus; conjunctiva is atrophic or thickened
Microscopic (histologic) description
- Band of subepithelial actinic elastosis with variable hyalinization and calcification
- May have acanthosis or dyskeratosis resembling carcinoma
- May have foreign body giant cell reaction around elastotic material (actinic granuloma)
Microscopic (histologic) images
Images hosted on other servers:
Lamina propria shows
basophilic elastosis
and hyalinization
