Neonatal intensive care unit-specific screening criteria for retinopathy of prematurity

This study investigated the incidence of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and its risk factors in a tertiary referral hospital in Taiwan to evaluate the applicability of the ROP screening guidelines published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Ophthalmology, and American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus in 2006 (2006 guidelines). A pediatric ophthalmologist applied the 2006 guidelines to screen for ROP and to treat with laser photocoagulation in each case. We retrieved all records of premature infants referred for ROP screening at the hospital during 2004 to 2008. Univariate logistic regression analysis was applied firstly to identify factors correlating with stage 3 ROP or with laser treatment, and then those significant (p < 0.05) risk factors were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression. In the 138 male and 118 female premature infants in this study, mean gestation age was 30.8 ± 2.8 weeks, and mean birth weight was 1464.7 ± 434.2 g. The percentage of infants with ROP in at least one eye was 38.7%. Thirty two (12.5%) had ROP stage 3 or higher in at least one eye. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the best predictors of type 1 pre-threshold ROP (requiring laser treatment) were young gestational age, low birth weight and male gender. As medical care of extremely premature infants improves, timely identification and treatment of conditions such as ROP are essential. Although the incidence of ROP in this institute was comparable to that in developing countries and higher than that in developed countries, the 2006 guidelines originally developed for a United States population were still applicable. However, the 2006 guidelines should be modified for a Taiwan population by considering gender.