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Grating acuity and visual-field development in children with intraventricular hemorrhage
1Department of Ophthalmology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85719, USA.
Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology
|May 1, 1997
Summary
Children with intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) show impaired visual development, including reduced acuity and visual field extent, compared to healthy preterm infants. Ocular abnormalities and cerebral palsy may contribute to these deficits.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Ophthalmology
- Neonatal Neurology
- Developmental Neuroscience
Background:
- Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) is a common complication in preterm infants.
- Visual development in preterm infants can be affected by various factors, including neurological injury.
- Understanding the long-term visual outcomes in preterm infants with IVH is crucial for early intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate and compare the visual development trajectories of preterm children with and without intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH).
- To identify specific visual deficits associated with IVH in preterm populations.
- To explore potential contributing factors to visual impairments in IVH survivors.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study comparing 171 preterm children with IVH to 73 healthy preterm (HPT) children.
- Serial assessments of visual functions including binocular grating acuity, monocular grating acuity, binocular visual-field extent, and monocular letter recognition acuity.
- Evaluations conducted at multiple time points from 1 month to 48 months of age.
Main Results:
- A significantly higher incidence of ocular abnormalities was observed in the IVH group compared to the HPT group.
- IVH subjects demonstrated significantly poorer grating acuity at 1, 4, 8, 36, and 48 months.
- Poorer recognition acuity and smaller visual field extent were also noted in IVH subjects at specific assessment points.
- Acuity deficits were not correlated with IVH grade or periventricular leukomalacia but showed potential association with ocular abnormalities or cerebral palsy.
Conclusions:
- Preterm children with intraventricular hemorrhage experience significant impairments in visual development, affecting both acuity and visual fields.
- The presence of ocular abnormalities or cerebral palsy may exacerbate visual deficits in preterm infants following IVH.
- These findings highlight the need for comprehensive ophthalmological and neurological monitoring in preterm infants with a history of IVH.