Lens-preserving excision of congenital hyperplastic pupillary membranes with clinicopathological correlation

Abstract

Persistent pupillary membrane is a congenital, incomplete involution of the tunica vasculosa lentis. These membranes are usually tenacious, with fine fibrils attached to the iris collarette on one side, with the other end either free floating or attached to the lens or iris focally on the opposite side. This condition is thought to represent ectopic iris tissue on the lens with abnormal iris stroma caused by aberrant involutional changes in the primitive embryological vascular system of anterior segment. Dense and thick membranes, particularly within the pupil, may result in deprivation amblyopia. We report clinical and histopathological findings in a case of a 12-year-old boy with bilateral extensive hyperplastic persistent pupillary membrane that was surgically removed without injury to the crystalline lens. Copyright © 2012 by the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.