Dose Assessment of Phosphorus-32 (32P) for the Treatment of Recurrent Pterygium

Nazempoor, Alireza; Aghamiri, Sayed Mahmood Reza; Poorbaygi, Hosein; Eidi, Taha; Saghamanesh, Somaye; Javanshir, Mohamad Reza

doi:10.22038/ijmp.2014.3570

Dose Assessment of Phosphorus-32 (32P) for the Treatment of Recurrent Pterygium

Document Type : Original Paper

Authors

Alireza Nazempoor ¹

Sayed Mahmood Reza Aghamiri ¹

Hosein Poorbaygi ²

Taha Eidi ¹

Somaye Saghamanesh ²

Mohamad Reza Javanshir ²

¹ Shahid Beheshti University, Faculty of Nuclear Engineering, Radiation-Medicine Department, Tehran, Iran

² Radiation Application Research School, Nuclear Science & Technology Research Institute (NSRTI), Tehran, Iran

10.22038/ijmp.2014.3570

Abstract

Introduction
Pterygium is a wing-shaped, vascular, fleshy growth that originates from the conjunctiva and can spread into the corneal limbus and beyond. Beta irradiation after bare sclera surgery of primary pterygium is a simple, effective, and safe treatment, which reduces the risk of local recurrence.
Materials and Methods
Dosimetric components of strontium-90 (⁹⁰Sr), phosphorous-32 (³²P), and ruthenium-106 (¹⁰⁶Ru), in form of ophthalmic applicators, were evaluated, using the Monte Carlo method.
Results
The obtained results indicated that ³²P applicator could deliver higher doses (about 10 Gy) to a target, located within a close distance from the surface, compared to ⁹⁰Sr and ¹⁰⁶Ru; it also delivered a lower dose to normal tissues.
Conclusion
The risk of pterygium has increased given the geographical location and climate of Iran. Spread of dust in the country over the past few years has also contributed to the rising rate of this condition. Our results showed that using ³²P applicator is a cost-effective method for pterygium treatment.

Keywords

Pterygium

32P applicator

Monte Carlo Method

MCNP

Subjects