Prevalence of Unscreened Premature Infants Presenting With Advanced Stages of Retinopathy of Prematurity in South India: An Analysis of 220 Eyes.

Purpose: To evaluate the demographic profile of premature infants presenting with stage 4B and stage 5 retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) at a tertiary referral center in South India.

Methods: This was a retrospective review including all premature infants with stage 4B and 5 ROP between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2022. Parameters included the newborns born at the tertiary care nursery of various institutes, gestational age, birth weight, age at presentation to the hospital, risk factors, screening details, neonatal intensive care unit details, reason for consultation, and timing of referral to the center.

Results: Two hundred twenty eyes of 110 premature infants were included. Of 110 infants, 6 were born within the same city and 104 were from other districts or states. Mean birth weight was 1,125 ± 360 g and mean gestational age at birth was 28 ± 2 weeks. Mean age was 42 ± 82 weeks and median age at presentation was 17 weeks (range: 2.86 to 591 weeks). Male-to-female infant ratio was 1.34:1. Fifty (45.4%) infants had bilateral stage 5 ROP, 17 (15.4%) had stage 5 in one eye and stage 4B in the other eye, 15 (13.6%) had bilateral stage 4B and 23 (20.9%) had stage 4B in one eye and stage 4A/stage 3 in the other eye. Five (4.5%) had stage 5 in one eye and vitreous hemorrhage/stage 4A in the other eye. Among those with bilateral stage 5 ROP, 90% were from neighboring districts/states. Fifty-two (47.27%) infants underwent vitreoretinal surgery. Of 110 infants, 28 (25.45%) were self-referred (late presentation due to family-related issues), 80 (72.73%) were referred by ophthalmologists either after a few sessions of late screening or for further management, 1 (0.91%) was referred through telescreening, and 1 was referred from pediatricians directly to the hospital.

Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of awareness of the disease and screening of premature infants. Lack of these two factors leads to late presentation of these infants with advanced stages and serious implications. [J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 2024;61(5):339-343.].