Evaluation of birth weight and gestational age of children at risk of developing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in the imaging and informatics for ROP research consortium (i-ROP)

Abstract

Purpose : The purpose of this study is to evaluate the birth weight and gestational age of children who developed retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in the imaging and informatics for ROP research consortium (i-ROP).

Methods : 768 neonates from six institutions in the imaging and informatics for ROP research consortium (i-ROP) were included in this retrospective study of prospectively collected data. Ophthalmologists performed examinations on infants at risk for ROP according to ophthalmoscopy. Digital fundus images were obtained for each exam using a wide-angle fundus camera (RetCam, Clarity Medical Systems) and uploaded to a secure web-based system. Images were reviewed by expert ROP image graders and a reference standard diagnosis (RSD) was determined by using the gradings from three expert graders and the clinical diagnosis. Category of disease was divided into mild, type 2 or pre-plus, and treatment-requiring for neonates with ROP. Mean and standard deviations were calculated for birth weights (BW) and gestational ages (GA) in each category of disease severity. Significance was assessed using two-tailed t-tests between categories.

Results : 590 neonates (77%) developed any stage of ROP based on the RSD. Of these, 325 developed mild ROP, 191 developed type 2 or pre-plus, and 74 developed treatment-requiring ROP. For neonates who developed mild ROP, the mean BW and GA was 1050±299g and 27.9±2.1 weeks. For neonates who developed type 2 ROP or pre-plus, these values were 780±236g and 26.1±1.9 weeks. For neonates who developed treatment-requiring ROP, these values were 706±192g and 25.1±1.8 weeks. (Table 1). Significance was reached between mild and type 2 or pre-plus for BW and GA (p<0.01), mild and treatment-requiring for BW and GA (p<0.01), and type 2 or pre-plus and treatment-requiring for BW and GA (p<0.01).

Conclusions : Lighter birth weights and lower gestational ages were observed in neonates with type 2 or pre-plus ROP and treatment-requiring ROP compared to mild ROP. In addition, lighter birth weights and lower gestational ages were observed for neonates with treatment-requiring ROP compared to type 2 or pre-plus. The results of this study support the relevance of birth weight and gestational age for determining children in need of ROP screening.

This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2018 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Honolulu, Hawaii, April 29 - May 3, 2018.