Prevalence of retinopathy of prematurity

Objectives: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a significant cause of preventable blindness among prematurely born babies. Advances in neonatal care support low-birth-weight babies and premature infants. These infants are more at risk of developing ROP. However, ROP is a preventable and treatable condition if newborns are screened in time. The study aims to identify the prevalence of ROP and assess the factors associated with ROP among newly born children in rural areas of South Gujarat. Materials and Methods: This was a hospital-based prospective study for 1 year and 5 months, that is, 2022, September to 2024, February 2024. All the preterm babies falling within inclusion criteria that is, babies born ≤34 weeks and or those with ≤2 kg and/or babies with a history of oxygen support, were included in the study. Bivariate statistics, Chi-square test, and logistic regression models were applied using the STATA version 14 software. Results: The study found that 4.8% of newborns had ROP. Extremely preterm adjusted odds ratio (AOR: 11.2, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.0–41.5) and very-low-birth-weight (AOR: 4.6; 95% CI: 1.7–12.5) infants exhibiting the highest risk. Furthermore, extremely low-birth-weight infants (AOR: 9.4; 95% CI: 2.8–31.8) and very-low-birth-weight infants (AOR: 7; 95% CI: 2.8–17.5) have a substantially higher likelihood of developing ROP than low-birth-weight infants. Surat district has having higher risk of developing ROP from south Gujarat. Conclusion: A low prevalence rate may be associated with low oxygen usage in rural areas, which needs further studies to confirm the association. These findings underscore the importance of targeted interventions and improved access to prenatal and neonatal care to mitigate the burden of ROP-related complications.