Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the incidence and severity of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in infants of birth weight < 1500 g and or < 32 weeks’ gestation Methods: 94 preterm infants were examined according to the Royal College of Ophthalmologists guidelines and retinopathy graded following the International Classification of ROP. Screening limits were 1500 g birth weight and 32 weeks’ gestational age. Fundus examinations for ROP were performed at 5 weeks’ chronological age from birth. Dilatation of the pupils was obtained with instillation of 1% tropicamide three times at 15 minute intervals. Ocular exams were repeated bimonthly for 6 months in children with diagnosed ROP Results: The 94 infants examined for ROP had a median gestational age of 29 (SD 2,8) weeks and a median birth weight of 1200 (SD 450) g. ROP was diagnosed in 18 of 94 subjects (19 %) by fundus examination. ROP stage 3 developed in one preterm infant, ROP stage 2 developed in 5 preterm infants, ROP stage 1 developed in 12 preterm infants. No premature babies developed stage 4 or stage 5 ROP. The disease regressed spontaneously in all cases and no infant required cryo/laser therapy. In the more premature infants, 23-26 weeks’ gestation, 58 % developed ROP and one developed severe ROP (stage 3). No disease more posterior to peripheral zone 2 was observed. The incidence of ROP was higher in infants exposed to > 21 % oxygen (33,3 %) than in infants that did not receive oxygen (9,7 %). Oxygen, blood transfusion, cardiopathy appear to be associated with an increased risk of retinopathy of prematurity Conclusions: ROP continues to be a common problem associated with prematurity in France. This study found a similar incidence of prethreshold ROP when compared to recent studies. The data showed that blood transfusion and cardiopathy may play a role in the development of ROP in premature infants
Keywords: retinopathy of prematurity • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: pre