Abstract
Purpose :
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a potentially blinding disorder affecting premature infants. The objectives of this study were (1) to identify the annual rate of ROP treatments during the period 2009-2015 and (2) to estimate the incidence of ROP treatment in babies born very prematurely (<27 weeks).
Methods :
Records of all the infants treated for ROP by the Vitreoretinal team at Bristol Eye Hospital during the period 2009-2015 were reviewed. Bristol Eye Hospital supports two neonatal intensive care units (NICUs); one is medical and surgical, the other is exclusively medical. The numbers treated in each year were calculated. Records of babies born under 27 weeks of gestation, that were cared for in the non-surgical NICU were also reviewed. Their requirement for laser treatments for ROP was calculated by week of gestation at birth.
Results :
In the two NICUs combined, 95 infants were treated for ROP between 2009 and 2015. The numbers treated increased from 9/158 (5.7%) of babies screened in 2009 to 22/159 (13.8%) in 2015 (ptrend 0.004). The rate of laser treatment for ROP increased as gestation at birth decreased: from 12/100 (12%) of babies born at 26 weeks to 17/29 (59%) of babies born at 23 weeks (ptrend =0.001).
Conclusions :
The number of laser treatments for ROP carried out by this unit has increased steadily between 2009-2015. This may in part be due to the increased need for ROP treatment in extremely preterm babies, whose survival has increased in the same period. This data may aid ROP service planning.
This abstract was presented at the 2019 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Vancouver, Canada, April 28 - May 2, 2019.