The incidence of visually impaired children with retinopathy of prematurity and their concomitant disabilities.

PURPOSE: To determine, in relation to two previous studies, the incidence of visual impairment (VI) caused by retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in children born in the Netherlands between 1994 and 2000 and their associated nonvisual disabilities.

METHODS

From all institutes, schools, and ambulatory services for the partially sighted and blind, data on ROP infants born between 1994 and 2000 were retrieved. Apart from neonatal and ophthalmologic data, other data were gathered concerning the following concomitant disabilities: behavioral abnormalities, epilepsy, hearing deficit, developmental delay, and distinct neurological handicaps. Birth rate data were obtained from the Central Bureau of Statistics for the Netherlands.

RESULTS

Data on 51 of 54 infants (94.4%) were studied. There was a statistically insignificant decrease in the incidence of visually impaired children caused by ROP in the period between 1994 and 2000 compared with the period between 1986 and 1994. Neonatal and ophthalmologic data of the infants were comparable for the study period and the previous period. The incidence of behavioral abnormalities in infants with ROP-related sequelae increased significantly in the study period compared with the previous one (46.9% v 21.8%, P <.05. The percentage of infants who received treatment for severe ROP did not change significantly (56.9% v 43.9% in the previous period).

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows a statistically insignificant decrease in the number of infants with visual impairment caused by ROP in the Netherlands in the period between 1994 and 2000 as well as a significant increase in the incidence of behavioral abnormalities in these children. Still, 43.1% of the infants did not receive acute-phase ROP treatment.