Search OptionsAbout JPED For Authors Privacy Policy Contact Links Home
Jornal de Pediatria • ISSN 1678-4782 • Volume 83 • N° 3 • May/June • 2007VoltarEditorial
Retinopathy of prematurity in Brazil: an emerging problem
Retinopatia da prematuridade no Brasil: um problema emergente
Graham E. Quinn • http://dx.doi.org/10.2223/JPED.1631 J Pediatr (Rio J). 2007;83(3):191-3
The tragedy of blindness from retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) does not arise from a lack of knowledge about the disease. Based on results of large multicenter trials,1,2 we know when sight-threatening acute retinopathy is most likely to develop, we know that babies at risk are usually in hospital under medical care, and we have treatments currently available that have been proven effective in markedly decreasing visual morbidity. Nevertheless, blindness due to ROP is an emerging reality in many countries as survival rates of very premature babies improve. This is of particular importance in countries with medium levels of human development (as defined by the UN Development Program Index)3 in which the number of neonatal intensive care units is increasing rapidly and effective detection and treatment programs are not yet in place. Prevention of blindness from ROP requires a complex series of interactions that must be carefully choreographed. The paper by Fortes Filho et al.4 in this issue of Jornal de Pediatria highlights many important issues regarding the detection of sight-threatening disease.
The impetus for starting ROP screening programs usually comes from concerned physicians, both neonatologists/pediatricians and ophthalmologists, who begin to see sporadic cases of blindness due to ROP in young children as smaller and smaller premature babies survive. These concerned individuals set out to increase awareness in the medical community that the disease is occurring in the population and that its detection and treatment are important. Fortes Filho et al. report that the importance of ROP blindness as a public health issue was established in Brazil with a 2002 ROP workshop that was jointly sponsored by national organizations of ophthalmology and pediatrics, as well as nongovernmental organizations. The workshop attendees determined that basic demographic data on which babies were blind due to the disorder were not available. Such data are essential when implementing a screening program. The attendees also acknowledged that data were not available on the prevalence of visual impairment due to ROP in the community, that few screening programs existed, and that different criteria were being used when programs did exist. Based on the expert opinion of those attending the workshop, guidelines were established to determine which babies should be screened, the timing of those examinations, what techniques were appropriate for use in screening, and how the findings of the screenings would be recorded. Each of these components is essential for establishing an effective ROP screening program.
Fortes Filho et al. examined babies who had birth weights of ≤ 1,500 g and/or gestational age of ≤ 32 weeks and who survived to the time of the initial screening at 6 weeks. Over a 4-year period in a single hospital, they examined 300 babies and found that 6% of these developed ROP severe enough to require treatment. This disease incidence is in accord with the large multicenter trials in the United States, though these trials enrolled babies only up to 1,250 g birth weight.1,2 This, however, probably reflects a high level of neonatal care in their hospital. A word of caution is warranted here. Fortes Filho et al. have just begun the work of implementing effective ROP screening in Brazil since they report their experience in a single nursery. Other nurseries in Brazil need to report their screening results, since, based on experience in other countries,5 it is relatively common for larger babies to develop blinding disease as neonatal services are extended to the broader community.
For the nursery data presented from Porto Alegre, the birth weight (BW) and gestational age (GA) criteria selected for screening are in general agreement with those currently recommended in countries with high levels of human development.6-8 It is noteworthy that no babies with larger BW or greater GA developed sight-threatening ROP in the nursery in Porto Alegre, but these findings are not generalizable to all nurseries in countries with middle levels of human development. This was emphatically documented by Gilbert et al.5 in Pediatrics 2005, when the investigators determined the birth weight and gestational age of babies who developed blindness or sight-threatening ROP in large number of countries with low, moderate and high development rankings. Using the UK guidelines of < 1,500 g and/or < 32 weeks gestation, they found that almost all babies (99.6%) in countries with high development rankings were within these guidelines, while more than 12% of babies with potentially blinding ROP in low or moderate development rankings would not have been examined if the UK guidelines had been generally applied.
As more data are collected on ROP from other nurseries in Brazil, the ROP screening guidelines, at first determined by expert opinion, can be modified using an evidence base. The parameters for birth weight and gestational age can then be set wide enough to include babies at risk for developing sight-threatening ROP, but not so broad that the physicians responsible for performing screenings are overwhelmed with numbers of babies to be examined. For example, in a large nursery in Peru, during a 1-year period, the ophthalmologist would have to screen 112 babies under the birth weight and gestational age criteria similar to those recommended in Brazil, but, based on his/her experience and according to the blindness observed in larger, more mature babies, guidelines were set that include babies up to 2,000 g birth weight and 33 weeks gestation. This increases the screening burden in that nursery by more than twice, but these larger babies are still developing serious disease (personal communication, L Gordillo, 2006). ROP screening guidelines should not be considered immutable, as change may be required as a better understanding of the prevalence of serious disease in the neonatal units is acquired. This is emphasized by the recent revision of the 2006 US guidelines that lowered the gestational age guideline from 32 weeks or less to 30 weeks or less.6 Indeed, it may be appropriate to develop guidelines within each neonatal unit that differ from national guidelines, but there may well be bureaucratic, political, and legal obstacles to such individualized guidelines.9
Another critical point in which ROP screening programs break down is in getting the baby in for a follow-up examination. In the Fortes Filho et al. report, the only child reported to progress to blindness was not brought by his parents for follow-up appointments. This is tragic since the timely treatment would likely have prevented this outcome. The caregivers need to make sure that parents or guardians are aware of and understand the critical importance of timely follow-up and, indeed, there may well be a case for keeping some babies in hospital until the time for developing serious disease is past. It is essential that the ophthalmologists and the neonatologist/pediatricians involved with the baby’s care develop guidelines that ensure outpatient follow-up appointments are made and attended.
Still, with the best of intentions and care, some babies will be blinded from ROP. They may not have been screened appropriately and we must develop alternative methods for detection of disease. Here, telemedicine offers promise for extending services where ophthalmology expertise may not yet be available.10,11 Some babies may have received timely treatment, but still progressed to retinal detachment and blindness. Despite the failure of the healthcare system to prevent their blindness, these children deserve our best efforts to educate and integrate them into society as much as they are able. This will require cooperative efforts among parents, the medical community and governmental institutions.
AuthorsGraham E. Quinn quinn@email.chop.edu MD, MSCE. Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Attending surgeon, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Reader Opinion Coments(0) Give your opinion Name:* Invalid email Email: *Publish comments? Your affiliation: * Comments: *
Confira a última edição
Early Release
Check out first-hand items that will be in our next issues.
Archive
See the full text of articles published in English since 1994.
Select a Volume Volume 88- ano 2012 Volume 87- ano 2011 Volume 86- ano 2010 Volume 85- ano 2009 Volume 84- ano 2008 Volume 83- ano 2007 Volume 82- ano 2006 Volume 81- ano 2005 Volume 80- ano 2004 Volume 79- ano 2003 Volume 78- ano 2002 Volume 77- ano 2001 Volume 76- ano 2000 Volume 75- ano 1999 Volume 74- ano 1998 Volume 73- ano 1997 Volume 72- ano 1996 Volume 71- ano 1995 Volume 70- ano 1994
Information translated into other languages
For Authors
Paper SubmissionGeneral InformationTop 10
See the ranking of most viewed articles over the year.
Sponsored by:
Citations
for Jornal de Pediatria
Citations to articles published in Jornal de Pediatria made by ISI indexed journals.
Download the issue No. 1 of Jornal de Pediatria from 1934.Reviewers
Jornal de Pediatria needs reviewers in all pediatrics areas.
Click here to register
South Cone Section
Selected abstracts of articles published in pediatric journals of the South Cone
Support