Diode laser photocoagulation of retinopathy of prematurity

Abstract

ObjectiveTo describe diode laser photocoagulation results in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in our hospital. Material and methodRetrospective cross-sectional study based on clinical histories of the premature infants treated during the period from 2004 to 2008. ResultsIn the treated group we found a predominance of pre-threshold retinopathy versus threshold retinopathy (84.35% vs 15.65%). The anatomic results were good in 96.5% of 147 eyes. None of the treated eyes in pre-threshold stage showed a poor result. Nine months after treatment, 84.85% of 132 eyes showed good functional results. A poor visual response was associated in most of the cases with neurological diseases. Infants with intraventricular hemorrhages had the worst anatomical and functional results. Strabismus (23.5%) and nystagmus (10.3%) rates were high, probably due to the increased prevalence of neurological diseases. The mortality rate in treated children was 7.3%. ConclusionsDiode laser photocoagulation in ROP offers very good anatomical results when performed at the appropriate time. Nevertheless, prematurity is still a very important cause of visual dysfunction in infancy due to the associated neurological disturbances.