Vol 35 No 2 ORIGINAL ARTICLE PDF

Results of initial screening for retinopathy of prematurity at a tertiary hospital

Herma Grace S. Cerdana, MD, Chona S. Liao, MD, Emilio L. Macias III, MD, Ma. Lourdes R. Nañagas, MD

Objective
To determine the prevalence and severity of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and its associated factors on initial examination of infants screened at a tertiary hospital.

Methods
A descriptive retrospective study was done using clinical charts of infants screened for ROP at a tertiary hospital from January 2007 to August 2009. Results of the initial examination were collated and analyzed.

Results
A total of 112 eyes of 56 infants were screened. Upon initial examination, 21(18.75%) eyes of 11 infants were positive for ROP. Of these, 14 (12.5%) eyes of 8 infants had severe ROP warranting laser or surgical intervention. Sixty-nine (61.6%) eyes of 35 infants had immature retina, while 22 (19.64%) eyes of 11 infants had mature retina. Three (2.68%) eyes had stage 5 ROP. The infants with stage 5 ROP had mean gestational age of 28 6/7 weeks by LMP and mean birth weight of 1,282 grams. The positive cases were most commonly associated with oxygen exposure (100%), sepsis (85.71%), and blood transfusion (80.95%).

Conclusion
The finding of more than half of the positive cases warranting laser or surgical interventions on initial examination merits re-evaluation of screening recommendations and their timing.

Keywords: Retinopathy of prematurity, Gestational age, Sepsis, Oxygen exposure, Birth