ytemic manifetation in repone to mydriai and phyical examination during creening for retinopathy of prematurity

Infantʹ ditre during funducopic examination ha been demontrated in previou tudie. The aim of thi tudy wa to determine whether advere effect manifeted via vital ign change during the creening examination for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) are becaue of the pharmacologic propertie of the eye drop or to phyical manipulation of the eye. The author alo invetigated the relationhip between ditre during the creening proce and the everity of prematurity of the infant. In a propective obervational tudy, all infant (n = 30) either weighing ≤1500 g or who were ≤32 week getational age at birth and were admitted to the neonatal intenive care unit (NICU) at Northwet Texa Hopital or Baptit t. Anthonyʹ Hopital from June 2002 to February 2003 were enrolled. Blood preure, pule, temperature, repiratory rate, and oxygen aturation were recorded at different time interval during the examination. Infant were excluded from the tudy if they were on the ventilator, conidered acutely ill, born with ignificant birth defect, or currently taking inotropic drug, or had received albuterol two hour before the examination. The author found that oxygen aturation and pule rate following phyical manipulation of the eye ignificantly varied from baeline value and the value obtained during the three intillation of topical mydriatic. No ignificant change in blood preure, temperature, or repiratory rate from their repective baeline value were oberved throughout the ROP creening examination. Getational age of the infant did not correlate with level of ditre during the examination. The author conclude that regardle of the everity of prematurity, infant eem to undergo ignificant ditre during the eyelid peculum examination. Thu ophthalmologit hould take into conideration the infantʹ dicomfort caued by phyical manipulation of the eye and attempt to perform the examination a quickly and a afely a poible uing topical anethetic.—Valérie Bioue