Degree of thrombocytopenia and severity of retinopathy of prematurity
Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 5, 2026
Monitoring Dynamic Growth of Retinal Vessels in Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy Mouse Model
Published on: April 2, 2021
Mohamed Mansour1,2, Vanishree Nandakumar1, Hany Aly1
1Cleveland Clinic Children's, Cleveland, OH, USA.
Background:
Growing evidence links thrombocytopenia to retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in preterm infants. However, it remains unclear whether the degree of thrombocytopenia affects the severity of ROP.
Methods:
VLBW (<1500 g) infants were divided into two groups. Group (A) with and Group (B) without thrombocytopenia. Chi square test, logistic regression, and correlation coefficient analysis models were used for statistical analysis. Statistical significance was set at a p value < 0.05.
Results:
Of the 305 VLBW infants, 47% developed ROP in group A compared to 16% in group B. Severe ROP occurred in 20% of infants in group A, whereas none in group B developed severe ROP. There was a significant inverse relationship between platelets count as a continuous variable and the grade of ROP (Spearman correlation coefficient: -0.36, p < 0.001).
Conclusion:
Thrombocytopenia is an independent risk factor for ROP in VLBW infants, with lower platelet counts associated with increased ROP severity.
