Retinopathy of prematurity: a study of prevalence and risk factors.

Background: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a serious complication of prematurity treatment and can lead to blindness unless recognized and treated early.

Objective: The objective was to estimate the prevalence of ROP in preterm infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), to identify the risk factors which predispose to ROP, and to assess the outcome of these cases.

Materials And Methods: A ROP prospective screening survey was performed enrolling all prematures admitted to the NICU from January 2009 to December 2010, with a gestational age of 32 weeks or less at birth and a birth weight of 1500 g or less.