Low Birth Weight Newborn Infants Research Articles

Third stage of the kangaroo method: exclusive breastfeeding and growth of preterm and/or low birth weight newborns.

To evaluate the rates of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) and growth of preterm and/or low birth weight newborns during the third stage of the Kangaroo Method (TSKM), at discharge. Retrospective study in a reference public maternity hospital between Jan/2014 and Dec/2017, including the preterm (less than 37 weeks) and/or low birth weight (less than 2500 g) newborn infants. Information was collected from medical records. Statistics analysis was done in SPSS software. 482 infants were included and followed up at the TSKM ambulatory. The average gestational age was 33 weeks (variation: 24-39 weeks) and birth weight, 1715g (variation: 455-2830 g). EBF occurred in 336 (70.1%) infants at hospital discharge, and in 291 (60.4%) at TSKM discharge. Each additional day of hospital stay increased the chance of infant formula (IF) use by 9.3% at hospital discharge and by 10.3% at TSKM discharge. Staying in the Kangaroo Neonatal Intermediate Care Unit (KNICU) favored EBF at hospital discharge and TSKM discharge (p<0.001). Not performing the kangaroo position increased the chance formula administration to the newborn infant at hospital discharge by 11%. Weight gain and head circumference growth were higher in infants using formula (p<0.001). The length of hospital stay and not performing the kangaroo position favored the use of infant formula at hospital and TSKM discharge. Staying in the KNICU favored exclusive breastfeeding at hospital and TSKM discharge. Weight gain and HC growth were higher in newborns receiving infant formula.

Parental Autonomy in the Care of Premature Newborns and the Experience of a Neonatal Team: Observational Prospective Study.

The European Foundation for the Care of Newborn Infants (EFCNI) has promoted the importance of parental involvement in the care of children. The study aimed to examine how the time required by parents to achieve autonomy in the care of their very low-birth weight newborn infants was modified during the implementation of a training program. This was an observational prospective study in the context of a quality improvement initiative. The Cuídame (meaning "Take Care of Me" in English) program was aimed at achieving parental autonomy. It was implemented over 2 periods: period 1, from September 1, 2020, to June 15, 2021; and period 2, from July 15, 2021, to May 31, 2022. The days required by parents to achieve autonomy in several areas of care were collected from the electronic health system. A total of 54 and 43 families with newborn infants were recruited in periods 1 and 2, respectively. Less time was required to acheive autonomy in period 2 for participation in clinical rounds (median 10.5, IQR 5-20 vs 7, IQR 4-10.5 d; P<.001), feeding (median 53.5, IQR 34-68 vs 44.5, IQR 37-62 d; P=.049), and observation of neurobehavior (median 18, IQR 9-33 vs 11, IQR 7-16 d; P=.049). More time was required to achieve autonomy for kangaroo mother care (median 14, IQR 7-23 vs 21, IQR 10-31 d; P=.02), diaper change (median 9.5, IQR 4-20 vs 14.5, IQR 9-32 d; P=.04), and infection prevention (median 1, IQR 1-2 vs 6, IQR 3-12; P<.001). Parents required less time to achieve autonomy for participation in clinical rounds, feeding, and observation of neurobehavior during the implementation of the training program. Nevertheless, they required more time to achieve autonomy for kangaroo mother care, diaper change, and infection prevention.

Ultrasound guided percutaneous central venous catheters in neonatal intensive care unit.

Ateş U, Derme T, Yılmaz Y, Özkan-Ulu H, Canpolat FE. Ultrasound guided percutaneous central venous catheters in neonatal intensive care unit. Turk J Pediatr 2018; 60: 478-481. Central venous catheters can be life-saving, especially in very low birth weight and sick newborns for whom peripheral access is difficult. However, the placement of a central venous catheter is technically difficult, especially in premature and newborn infants. To demonstrate the efficacy of placement of central venous catheters under guidance of ultrasonography (US) in neonatal intensive care units. The patients who were hospitalized in newborn intensive care unit and central venous catheters were placed into the internal jugular vein under the guidance of US were analyzed retrospectively. Successful cannulation rate was 90.9% in patients. The rate of success at first attempt was 68.1% in patients. The rate of three and more attempts was 9.1% in patients. The rate of complication was 9.1% in patients. The average intervention time was 8 minutes in patients. Central venous cannulation under the guidance of two-dimensional US is an effective method which can be easily and safely applied to low birth weight premature and newborn infants in newborn intensive care units.

Effects of birth weight on profiles of dried blood amino-acids and acylcarnitines.

Background Birth weight influences profiles of dried blood amino-acids and acylcarnitines in newborn screening. This study aimed to define a more appropriate cut-off value to reduce the false positive rate and the number of recalled patients in newborn screening. Methods All babies who underwent newborn screening in our center were included; they were divided into groups by birth weight: 2500-3999 g (comparator group), <1000 g (group 1), 1000-1499 g (group 2), 1500-2499 g (group 3), and >4000 g (group 4). The 0.5th and 99.5th percentiles were used as the cut-off values. Comparisons were done on amino acid and acylcarnitines concentrations between the groups. False positive rate, positive predictive value, corrected false positive rate by birth weights were determined. Results Data on a total of 578,287 newborn infants were included in the analysis. The total false positive rate was 0.75%, and positive predictive value 2.89%. The false positive rate was 0.69%, 0.54% and 5.31% in infants with normal birth weight, birth weight of >4000 (group 4) and low birth weight of < 2500 g (groups 1, 2 and 3), respectively. Low-birth weight infants had much higher phenylalanine, tyrosine, methionine, arginine, propionylcarnitine, isovalerylcarnitine and octadecanoylcarnitine concentrations. Free carnitines and palmitoylcarnitine concentrations were lower. After adjusting for birth weight, false positive rate of all indices decreased to 0.53%, and positive predictive value increased to 4.31%. Conclusions Amino acid and carnitine concentrations in low-birth weight newborn infants may differ from the normal term newborn infants. The cut-off values of individual metabolites should be adjusted based on birth weight, to reduce false positive rate and increase positive predictive value.

Motivation and barriers to Kangaroo mother care amongst health service providers in Kenya

Introduction: Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a useful and cheap method of caring for low birth weight and premature newborn infants in economically underprivileged countries where access to incubators is limited. Data on knowledge of and barriers to this method amongst health care professionals are important in informing planning for newborn care health services but are largely lacking for African population. Objective: This study aimed at assessing the knowledge of and barriers to Kangaroo Mother Care amongst health care providers in Kenya. Method: A structured pretested questionnaire was administered to 155 health workers in Kenya to test the knowledge and barriers to KMC. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15.0 for windows and results presented using tables, bar and pie charts. Results: All the 155 health care professionals had heard of Kangaroo Mother Care. Almost half did not have sufficient information on benefits and requirements for KMC. Most respondents (91.2%) thought that personnel with special skills on the practice were needed to oversee it. The most common barriers to practice of Kangaroo Mother Care were inadequate skills (59%), uncooperative mothers (22%), reluctant health care provider (11%) and fear for the safety of the baby (8%). Conclusion: Most of health professionals in Kenya are aware of Kangaroo Mother Care. Its practice is, however, hampered by their lack of know-how of its benefits, requirements and inadequate skills. Training programs to enlighten health care professionals are recommended.

Antithrombin for the prevention of intraventricular hemorrhage in very preterm infants.

Preterm birth remains the major risk factor for the development of intraventricular hemorrhage, an injury that occurs in 25% of very low birth weight infants. Intraventricular hemorrhage is thought to be venous in origin and intrinsic thromboses in the germinal matrix are likely to play a triggering role. Antithrombin, a glycoprotein synthesized in the liver, is the major plasma inhibitor of thrombin thus modulating blood coagulation. Very low birth weight newborn infants have low levels of antithrombin and the risk of developing intraventricular hemorrhage is increased by the presence of hypercoagulability in the first hours of life. The administration of anticoagulants such as antithrombin may offset the increased risk of developing intraventricular hemorrhage. Anticoagulants may also reduce the risk of developing parenchymal venous infarct, a condition known to complicate intraventricular hemorrhage. To assess whether the prophylactic administration of antithrombin (started within the first 24 hours after birth) reduces the incidence of germinal matrix-intraventricular hemorrhage in very preterm neonates when compared to placebo, no treatment, or heparin. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library 2015), MEDLINE (1996 to 22 November 2015), EMBASE (1980 to 22 November 2015), and CINAHL (1982 to 22 November 2015). No language restrictions were applied. We searched the abstracts of the major congresses in the field (Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand and Pediatric Academic Societies) from 2000 to 2015. Randomised controlled trials, quasi-randomised controlled trials and cluster trials comparing the administration of early, i.e. within the first 24 hours of life, antithrombin in very preterm infants (gestational age < 32 weeks, any birth weight). For each of the included trials, two authors independently extracted data (e.g. number of participants, birth weight, gestational age, antithrombin formulation (plasma-derived or recombinant), mode of administration, and duration of therapy, etc.) and assessed the risk of bias (e.g. adequacy of randomization, blinding, completeness of follow-up). The primary outcomes considered in this review are intraventricular hemorrhage and severe intraventricular hemorrhage. Two randomized controlled trials, for a total of 182 infants, met the inclusion criteria of this review. Both trials compared antithrombin with placebo. We found no significant differences in the rates of intraventricular hemorrhage (typical RR 1.30, CI 95% 0.87 to 1.93, typical RD 0.09, 95% CI -0.05 to 0.23; 2 studies, 175 infants; I² = 18% for RR and I² = 42% for RD) and severe intraventricular hemorrhage (typical RR 1.04, CI 95% 0.55 to 1.94; typical RD 0.01, 95% CI -0.11 to 0.12; 2 studies, 175 infants; I² = 0% for RR and I² = 0% for RD). Among secondary outcomes, we found no significant differences in terms of neonatal mortality (typical RR 2.00, CI 95% 0.62 to 6.45; typical RD 0.04, 95% CI -0.03 to 0.12; 2 studies, 182 infants; I² = 46% for RR and I² = 61% for RD) and in the other specified outcomes, such as bronchopulmonary dysplasia. The quality of the evidence supporting these findings is limited due to the imprecision of the estimates. The administration of antithrombin seems not to reduce the incidence and severity of intraventricular hemorrhage in very preterm infants. Limited evidence is available on other clinically relevant outcomes. Given the imprecision of the estimate, the results of this systematic review are consistent with either a benefit or a detrimental effect of antithrombin and do not provide a definitive answer to the review question.

Prophylactic Probiotics for Prevention of Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) in Low Birth Weight Neonates

Background: Probiotics are thought to interfere with the mechanisms involving in the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis in neonates. Objectives: This study was planned to assess the effect of prophylactic probiotics for the prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis in low birth weight neonates. Patients and Methods: This prospective triple-blinded, interventional, randomized clinical trial enrolled 136 low birth weight newborn infants with a minimum birth weight of 700 g, from September 2010 to September 2011. The study and control groups were compared regarding; 1- occurrence of NEC, 2- time to reach full feeding, defined as days required to reach full enteral feeding, 3- duration of hospital course, and 4-incidence of sepsis and death. The study group was fed with milk and Protexin (restore) and the control group was fed with milk and a placebo that was physically indistinguishable from the probiotic powder. SPSS version 16 was used, and P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: One hundred thirty six neonates were enrolled in the study. Seventy six (54.4%) were male. The mean of gestational age and birth weight were 31 weeks and 1407 grams, respectively. The mean age to start feeding was 4.36 days. There was not any significant difference in the NEC cases between the two groups. Conclusions: This study did not show any benefit from prophylactic probiotics in the prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis in low birth weight neonates which could be probably due to low dose probiotics used.

Salud perinatal de la población migrante

The number of foreign migrants tends to grow. The situation of people living away from their own country is complex and has an impact on the public health system. The objective of this article was to analyze the perinatal risk of migrant mothers and their newborn infants in comparison to native Argentine mothers and their newborn infants. Cohort study that included 2000 mothers and their newborn infants (1000 migrants and 1000 natives) assisted at a public maternity hospital. Native mothers had a higher rate of low birth weight newborn infants (9.9% versus 5.3%; p <0.01), primiparity (42% versus 37%; p= 0.012), and adolescent pregnancy (6% versus 1.3%; p <0.001). Migrant women had a higher rate of poorly controlled pregnancies (21.7% versus 13.4%; p <0.01), positive serology for Chagas disease (3.2% versus 0.4%; p <0.01), and newborn infants requiring phototherapy (20.5% versus 14.3%; p =0.04). In our study, Argentine mothers had a higher rate of low birth weight newborn infants, primiparity and adolescent pregnancies, while immigrant women had higher rate of positive serology for Chagas disease, poor antenatal controls and more newborn infants requiring phototherapy.

Meconium-related Ileus in Extremely Low-birth Weight Newborn Infants Meconium-related Ileus in ELBWI

Meconium-related Ileus in Extremely Low-birth Weight Newborn Infants Meconium-related Ileus in ELBWI

Mortality and morbidity of very low birth weight newborn infants assisted in Buenos Aires public hospitals

Mortality and morbidity of very low birth weight newborn infants assisted in Buenos Aires public hospitals

Blood Transfusion: A Risk Factor in Retinopathy of Prematurity

Background: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a retinal vascular disorder of preterm neonates resulting in visual impairement. Along with prematurity, very low birth weight and hyperoxia, role of blood transfusions in the occurrence of ROP has been strongly emphasized. Objective: To determine the relationship of timing and volume of blood transfusion and other factors with the development of ROP in preterm very low birth weight (VLBW) newborn infants. Methods: This was a prospective observational study. It was done among the premature (&lt;34 weeks) VLBW neonates admitted to SCABU and ICU of Dhaka Shishu Hospital. Neonates who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were followed up daily to record certain clinical factors and effect of blood transfusions. Among 93 discharged neonates subjected to have ophthalmological screening, 58 (62%) completed the examinations. After ophthalmological study, they were divided into “Normal group” (n=35) that included newborns without ROP, and “Abnormal group” (n=23) that included newborns with ROP. Comparative analysis of recorded clinical factors was done between the two groups. Results: Blood transfusion during the first week of life (p=.002, OR 1.15; C.I. 1.01– 1.32) and cumulative volume of transfused blood (ml/kg) (p=.002, OR2.8, CI: 1.65- 4.41) were significantly associated with the development of ROP. All neonates with ROP have got one or more transfusions (p=.003; OR 2.11 95% CI.012-.676). Univariate analysis demonstrated that VLBW (p=.03; OR .93; 95% CI=.87-.91), duration of oxygen inhalation (p=.001; OR 28; 95% CI 4.85-17.81) and mechanical ventilation (p= .001; OR3.36; 95% CI2.5-5.52) has significant relationship with ROP. Conclusion: This study showed that repeated blood transfusion resulting in large cumulative volume, transfusion in first week of life has significant association with ROP. Other risk factors are very low birth weight, prolonged oxygen inhalation and mechanical ventilation. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjch.v34i2.10215 BJCH2010; 34(2): 38-43

The relationship between leukemoid reaction and perinatal morbidity, mortality, and chorioamnionitis in low birth weight infants

Neonatal leukemoid reaction (NLR) is relatively rare and considered as a white blood cell (WBC) count ≥50×10(9)/l . The aim of this study was to investigate the association of NLR with neonatal morbidity and mortality and maternal chorioamnionitis in low birth weight infants. In this case-controlled retrospective study, the medical records of 1200 newborn infants with a birth weight <2500g admitted to the neonatal unit over a period of 5 years were reviewed. The infants who developed features of NLR (n=17, 1.4%) formed the study group, while the remainder without NLR, matched for gestational age and birth weight (n=123), formed the control group. A chart review was performed and salient demographic, clinical, and laboratory data abstracted. A statistical analysis was subsequently performed on this data. The mean WBC and absolute neutrophil counts of infants with NLR were significantly higher than those in the control group. The peak time of NLR was at 7.9±3.6 (interquartile range (IQR) 1-30) days and on average it improved within 4.1±1.95 (IQR 2-9) days. It was noted that those infants with NLR were mostly born by vaginal delivery and their mothers had a higher rate of early rupture of the membranes and chorioamnionitis. NLR was associated with a 4-fold increase in sepsis, 20-fold increase in intraventricular hemorrhage, 54-fold increase in bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and 6-fold increase in mortality. In the study group, those infants whose mothers had chorioamnionitis had a higher rate of early rupture of the membranes and they developed sepsis and intraventricular hemorrhage more often than those whose mothers did not have clinical chorioamnionitis. In low birth weight newborn infants, NLR is significantly associated with sepsis, intraventricular hemorrhage, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and a high mortality rate. Also, those infants with NLR are more likely to be born to mothers with chorioamnionitis and they face sepsis and intraventricular hemorrhage more often.

Mercury Levels in Premature and Low Birth Weight Newborn Infants after Receipt of Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines

Mercury Levels in Premature and Low Birth Weight Newborn Infants after Receipt of Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines

Mothers' response on Kangaroo Mother Care intervention for preterm infants

Background The low birth weight still remains the main causeof neonatal deaths. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) program canprovide a better care for low birth weight newborn infants throughskin-to-skin contact.Objective The aim of this study was to assess factors andresponses from mothers that would influence the re-introductionand re-implementation of KMC at neonatology ward, CiptoMangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta.Methods This was a prospective preliminary study usingquestionnaires, to mothers oflow birth weight infants who wouldundergo KMC in neonatal ward.Results Most mothers felt sad, guilty, worried, afraid and notconfident when they first saw their babies, thus, they were initiallydoubtful and afraid in the beginning of KMC. But, after KMCwas implemented, most of the mothers found positive effectson mother-infant bonding, maternal affection in love or touch,breastfeeding and mother's confidence in newborn care.Conclusions KMC provides benefits for mothers. Most mothersyield positive response when implementing KMC program to theirinfants.

Mercury Levels in Premature and Low Birth Weight Newborn Infants after Receipt of Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines

We conducted a population-based pharmacokinetic study to assess blood levels and elimination of mercury after vaccination of premature infants born at > or =32 and <37 weeks of gestation and with birth weight > or =2000 but <3000 g. Blood, stool, and urine samples were obtained before vaccination and 12 hours to 30 days after vaccination from 72 premature newborn infants. Total mercury levels were measured by atomic absorption. The mean +/- standard deviation (SD) birth weight was 2.4 +/- 0.3 kg for the study population. Maximal mean +/- SD blood mercury level was 3.6 +/- 2.1 ng/mL, occurring at 1 day after vaccination; maximal mean +/- SD stool mercury level was 35.4 +/- 38.0 ng/g, occurring on day 5 after vaccination; and urine mercury levels were mostly nondetectable. The blood mercury half-life was calculated to be 6.3 (95% CI, 3.85 to 8.77) days, and mercury levels returned to prevaccination levels by day 30. The blood half-life of intramuscular ethyl mercury from thimerosal in vaccines given to premature infants is substantially shorter than that of oral methyl mercury in adults. Because of the differing pharmacokinetics, exposure guidelines based on oral methyl mercury in adults may not be accurate for children who receive thimerosal-containing vaccines.

Hospital mortality of very low birth weight newborn infants

Hospital mortality of very low birth weight newborn infants

The use of peritoneal dialysis in newborns

Acute renal failure is a common complication in critically ill newborn infants. The therapy of acute renal failure is conservative and etiological. Patients not responding to this kind of therapy require peritoneal dialysis. This retrospective study included 6 newborn infants undergoing peritoneal dialysis during the period from January 2004 to June 2006, at the Nephrology Department of the Institute of Child and Youth Health Care in Novi Sad. All patients presented with complications of acute renal failure including hypercalemia and uremic encephalopathy. Complete restoration of kidney function was evident in four patients on peritoneal dialysis. Three patients are still alive, but in one patient acute renal failure progressed to chronic renal failure. One patient died in the third month of life due to multiple organ dysfunction, after just two days of dialysis. Several complications were reported: intra-abdominal hemorrhage, dialysate leakage, peritonitis and dialysis catheter obstruction. Periotoneal dialysis catheter placement is a great problem due to the size of the newborn. If it is estimated that it will be a long-lasting dialysis, Tenckhoff catheter is recommended. In very low birth weight newborn infants, in poor overall condition, general anesthesia is too risky, and acute peritoneal dialysis catheter should be placed (i.v. cannula, venous catheter). Peritoneal dialysis is the method of choice in newborns with acute renal failure, and it is used in the treatment of neonatal asphyxia till the restoration of kidney function is achieved.

The cardiothoracic ratio in AGA and SGA very low birth weight newborn infants

Cardiothoracic (CT) ratio is a common measurement used to assess heart size in chest radiographs of pediatric patients, but no recent studies have analyzed the standards for CT ratios in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. The aim of this study was to provide improved standards for CT ratios measured from chest radiographs of VLBW (<1500 g) infants, and to compare CT ratios between small for gestational age (SGA) and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants in this population. Among VLBW infants admitted to the Jacobi Medical Center NICU from 2002 to 2004, CT ratios were calculated from anteroposterior supine chest radiographs taken of 54 VLBW infants (18 SGA and 36 AGA group-matched on the basis of birthweight and sex) during the first 24 h of life. There were no significant differences between the two groups with respect to birthweight, sex, 1-min Apgar score, 5-min Apgar score, intubation status and degree of inspiration. Median GA of the SGA infants was significantly greater than the AGA infants (30 and 27 weeks, respectively; P<0.001). CT ratios among SGA infants were significantly larger than those among AGAs. Using the widest internal width of the bony thorax, the mean CT ratio among SGA and AGA infants was 0.523 and 0.479, respectively (P=0.00102). VLBW SGA infants have larger CT ratios than VLBW AGA infants, suggesting that existing standards for normal CT ratios may be inappropriate for use among SGA infants.

Can neutrophil responses in very low birth weight infants predict the organisms responsible for late-onset bacterial or fungal sepsis?

To examine neutrophil counts and various neutrophil indices in preterm very low birth weight (VLBW) newborn infants (birth weight <1500 g) with culture-proven late-onset sepsis to determine whether the neutrophil responses could predict the responsible infectious agent. Neutrophil parameters were examined during episodes of culture-proven sepsis in a cohort of 1026 VLBW infants, born over a 6-year period and admitted to two different neonatal intensive care units. Revised reference ranges of Mouzinho et al. for circulating neutrophil counts in VLBW infants were used to define the abnormal neutrophil indices. One hundred sixty-two of 1026 (15.8%) VLBW infants had blood culture-proven late-onset infection. Infections included Gram-positive bacteria (113/162, 70%), Gram-negative bacteria (30/162, 18%) and fungi (19/162, 12%). Of the 162 sepsis episodes, only nine (5.5%) were associated with neutropenia (absolute total neutrophil (ATN) <1100/mm3). Six of the 30 (20%) infants with Gram-negative bacterial sepsis were neutropenic compared to 2.6% infants with Gram-positive bacterial sepsis and none with fungal sepsis (odds ratio: 11; 95% confidence interval: 2.6, 47.3). Neutrophil counts and various neutrophil indices were similar in infants with late-onset Gram-positive bacterial and fungal sepsis; but total white blood cells, and ATN count were significantly lower (P = 0.004 and 0.001, respectively) in infants with late-onset Gram-negative bacterial sepsis. In VLBW infants, common organisms causing infection have different effects on neutrophil responses. Occurrence of neutropenia during evaluation of sepsis in sick VLBW infants is more common with Gram-negative bacterial infection.

The prevalence of retinopathy of prematurity in very low birth weight newborn infants

To evaluate the prevalence of retinopathy of prematurity and the risk factors affecting very low birth weight infants at a neonatal intensive care unit. A cross-sectional study investigating all newborn infants with birth weights < or = 1,500 g and/or gestational ages < or = 32 weeks, admitted to the Neonatal ICU at the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, from October 2002 to March 2004. Patients underwent indirect binocular ophthalmoscopy of the fundus at six weeks postpartum. Infants who progressed to threshold disease were given laser therapy. One hundred and fourteen newborn infants were studied. Eighty-three patients were not diagnosed with retinopathy of prematurity, 18 had stage I retinopathy of prematurity, seven stage II retinopathy of prematurity and six patients had threshold retinopathy of prematurity. The prevalence of retinopathy of prematurity was 27.2% (95% CI: 19.28-36.32) affecting 31 newborn infants, and the prevalence of retinopathy of prematurity progressing to threshold disease was 5.26% (95% CI: 1.96-11.10), affecting six patients. Retinopathy of prematurity was confirmed in 50% of the patients with weights below 1,000 g and 71.5% of newborn infants born at gestational ages of less than 28 weeks. Gestational age and birth weight were significantly lower among patients with retinopathy of prematurity than among those without. Although the results of this study demonstrate that the observed prevalence was similar to that described in literature, this ROP frequency remains elevated among very low birth weight infants. The development of retinopathy of prematurity was inversely proportional to weight and gestational age at birth.