Application of the Postnatal Growth and Retinopathy of Prematurity (G-ROP) criteria at a tertiary referral hospital

Background: Application of current retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening criteria results in many unnecessary examinations, because only 5%-10% of infants screened require treatment. Application of screening criteria established by the Postnatal Growth and Retinopathy of Prematurity Study could significantly reduce unnecessary examinations without sacrificing sensitivity to detect treatment-requiring ROP. We evaluated the performance of the G-ROP criteria in a population of high-risk, outborn infants. Methods: The medical records of consecutive infants screened and/or treated for ROP at Children's Health Care of Atlanta Hospitals from May 1, 2013, to September 6, 2019, were reviewed retrospectively. The sensitivity of the G-ROP birthweight and gestational age screening criteria to detect treatment-requiring ROP was calculated. Results: During the study period, 901 children underwent examinations for ROP; of these, 5 were excluded from the analysis because birth weight (BW) data was lacking. Of the 896 remaining patients, 120 patients were treated for ROP. Application of G-ROP birth weight and gestational age (GA) criteria alone resulted in a sensitivity of 99.2% to detect infants requiring treatment. Application of weight gain criteria was problematic, because many patients were transferred into our institutions after the specified intervals of 10-19, 20-29, and 30-39 days. Conclusions: G-ROP BW and GA screening criteria were highly sensitive in detecting treatment-requiring ROP. Applying weight gain criteria in referral centers can be problematic. Intake procedures at referral centers should include documentation of weight gain during 10-19, 20-29, and 30-39 days of life.