INCIDENCE AND RISK-FACTORS OF RETINOPATHY OF PREMATURITY IN A TERTIARY CARE NEWBORN UNIT IN NEW-DELHI

Background. Retinopathy of prematurity (RoP) has become more common in developed countries with an improvement in survival of very premature ! infants. Though previously rare, it is likely to emerge as a major p roblem in India because of improving outcome of 'at-risk' preterm infa nts. Methods. In a prospective study we estimated the incidence of RoP among at-risk neonates in a tertiary care unit. Infants with birth-we ights of <1500 g, gestation <35 weeks and preterm neonates who require d supplemental oxygen for >24 hours were subjected to periodic ophthal mological evaluation for detection of RoP until full retinal vasculari zation occurred. Results. Sixty-six eligible infants completed the ful l protocol during the 15-month study period. The incidence of RoP was 20% in the cohort and 27% among the very low birth-weight neonates. Th e incidence of threshold RoP was 7% in the cohort. The occurrence of R oP was inversely related 20 the gestation and birth-weight. RoP typica lly developed at the post-conceptional age of 32-35 weeks. Blood trans fusion and clinical sepsis emerged as independent risk factors of RoP on step-wise logistic regression analysis. Cryotherapy undertaken in 5 cases (9 eyes) led to amelioration of the changes of RoP. Conclusion. The incidence of RoP in our neonates was lower than that reported fro m other centres. Blood transfusion and clinical sepsis are risk factor s for RoP in our newborn infants.