Abstract
Purpose :
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) can affect the quality of life in children from early age. We determine the incidence and severity of ROP and identify associated risk factors, in 2015 – 2019 period in our area.
Methods :
A descriptive and retrospective study of premature infants examined in our service from January 2015 to December 2019 was carried out. All newborns with a gestational age (GA) less than 32 weeks and / or a birth weight (BW) less than 1500 g were included, as well various risk factors (RF) that may influence the development of ROP were evaluated. Subsequently we realized statistical analysis of the data.
Results :
166 patients were evaluated, with a mean GA of 29.63 weeks and a mean BW of 1260.57 ± 322.85 gr. The incidence of ROP was 10.4% (17 patients), presenting 76.5 % of cases severe stage of ROP. we preformed laser therapy in all these cases and intravitreal ranibizumab as adjuvant treatment in 11.8 % of cases, getting complete regression of retinopathy in all patients.
The frequency of the risk factors was: O2 therapy in 87.9%, with a mean duration time of 24.72 ±25.34 weeks. Respiratory distress 83.7%, ductus persistence 52.9%, intracranial hemorrhage 58.8%, sepsis 76.5% and transfusion 70.6%.
The ROP group was compared with a similar newborns group, regarding GA and BW as well the use of O2, that did not develop ROP. We only find statistically significant difference in the development of ROP comparing frequency of sepsis (OR = 4.28 CI = 1.21-15.13) and transfusions (OR = 6.5 95% CI = 1.12-37.4).
Conclusions :
In our hospital, 10.4% of premature infants with risk characteristics developed ROP, 76.5% of these kids showed severe retinopathy, so treatment was applied obtaining complete ROP regression in all patients. Use of O2 and respiratory distress have been associated RF, however only sepsis and transfusions showed significant differences in our research. According with the expectation of growth in the incidence of this pathology due mainly to the advancement of life support maneuvers employed in modern pediatrics, we must continue to apply these screening criteria in our center, because it has allowed the early detection of all cases of severe ROP in our center.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.