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Changes in the visual field after photocoagulation or cryotherapy in children with retinopathy of prematurity
S Takayama1, H Tachibana, M Yamamoto
1Department of Ophthalmology, Kobe Children's Hospital, Japan.
Insights
Retinopathy of prematurity treatments like photocoagulation can cause long-term visual field defects. Minimizing these interventions may help preserve vision in children.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatric Medicine
- Visual Science
Background:
- Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a leading cause of childhood blindness.
- Photocoagulation and cryotherapy are established treatments for ROP, aiming to prevent disease progression.
- Long-term visual outcomes following these treatments require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the long-term visual field status in children previously treated for retinopathy of prematurity.
- To correlate visual field defects with treatment sites and ROP severity.
- To evaluate the impact of early ROP treatment on peripheral vision.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 13 children (26 eyes) with a history of ROP treated over 10 years prior.
- Comprehensive visual field examination.
- Correlation of visual field findings with documented photocoagulation scar sites and ROP severity.
Main Results:
- Visual field defects were observed, primarily in the temporal periphery.
- Defects corresponded to photocoagulation scar locations and areas of severe ROP.
- Some patients exhibited reduced visual sensitivity across the entire visual field.
Conclusions:
- While effective in preventing ROP progression, photocoagulation and cryotherapy can lead to lasting visual field deficits.
- Minimizing the extent of photocoagulation and cryotherapy may be beneficial to reduce long-term visual field impairment.
- Further research into optimizing ROP treatment strategies is warranted to balance efficacy and visual field preservation.
Abstract:
We examined the visual field in 13 children (26 eyes) who had had retinopathy of prematurity for which photocoagulation or cryotherapy was administered more than 10 years previously. Defects of the visual field observed in the periphery of the temporal side corresponded to the sites of photocoagulation scar formation and to areas severely affected by retinopathy of prematurity. In addition, sensitivity in some patients was reduced over the entire visual field. It has been established that treatment with photocoagulation and cryotherapy is effective in preventing the progression of retinopathy of prematurity. However, on the basis of our results, we recommend that the use of photocoagulation and cryotherapy be minimized to prevent the progression of visual field defects.