Ligneous
conjunctivitis (LC) is a rare form of bilateral chronic recurrent
disease in which thick
membranes form on the
palpebral conjunctiva and other mucosal sites. We
report the clinical features and describe the management of two cases. Case 1 was an 8-month-old
patient with bilateral membranous
conjunctivitis. Case 2 was a 5-year-old
patient with unilateral membranous
conjunctivitis,
esotropia, mechanical ptosis and complicated
cataract, and had been treated with a number of medications. Histological investigation of the
membrane in both cases showed LC.
Treatments with
amniotic membrane transplantation and institution of topical
cyclosporine have shown good response. There has been complete resolution of the
membranes with no
recurrence at the end of 40- and 28-month follow-ups, respectively. No
treatment related side effects were seen. Thus, it appears that
amniotic membrane transplantation and topical
cyclosporine are effective alternatives for the
treatment of LC.