Five-year demographic profile of retinopathy of prematurity at a tertiary care institute in North India.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to study the demographic profile and pattern of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) at a tertiary care institute in India.

Methods: An ambispective study from January 2013 to December 2017. Infants with birth weights (BWs) <1750 g and gestational ages <34 weeks were screened for ROP. Demographic details and ROP severity were recorded.

Results: Data of 2595 of the 3697 infants screened were analyzed. The number of infants screened and treated for ROP increased from 190 and 29, respectively (2013), to 818 and 132, respectively (2017). The overall incidence of "any ROP" was 32.3%, and severe ROP was 17.7%. Though 39.5% of all infants were outborns (not born in the study center), severe ROP was present in 69.7% of these compared to 18.8% among inborns. Outborns with ROP had a higher mean BW (1308 g) compared to inborns (1202 g) (P < 0.01). ROP Stage 1 was seen in 12%, Stage 2 in 34%, Stage 3 in 13%, Stage 4 in 6%, Stage 5 in 14%, and aggressive posterior ROP (APROP) in 20%. APROP was seen in 16% of infants in 2013, 10% in 2014, 15% in 2015, 22% in 2016, and 28% in 2017. Infants with Stage 4B/Stage5 (15.6% of all ROP) were presented at a mean age of 7.5 months and all had no/delayed screening.

Conclusion: Incidence of any ROP was 32.3% and was more common in outborns than inborns. The proportion of infants with APROP showed a rising trend over the years. Nearly 15.6% of infants were presented with stage4B/5 ROP due to delayed/absent screening.