Diabetes mellitus as a risk factor for development retinopathy of prematurity. Review

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a complex and unresolved problem in pediatric ophthalmology, leading to visual disability. Low birth weight and prematurity are the main risk factors, and they form the basis of clinical recommendations for screening for ROP in all children under 35 weeks of gestational age and weighing less than 2000 g. However, many researchers point to other risk factors that can be divided into maternal, prenatal and perinatal. In this review, we consider maternal diabetes mellitus as a risk factor for ROP. Changes in the retina in premature infants and mothers with diabetes mellitus have some common features, since pathological angiogenesis occurs at the basis of these diseases. In addition, diabetes is a risk factor for preterm birth, and prematurity is a leading cause of neonatal morbidity, including the development of ROP. This suggests that maternal diabetes mellitus may have both direct and indirect effects on the development of ROP. To develop predictive models, an understanding of risk factors for ROP, the pathophysiology of retinal vascular diseases, and diseases of prematurity is necessary.