The Role Of Hepatic And Renal Functions In The Development Of Retinopathy Of Prematurity: Is Proteinuria A New Risk Factor?

Abstract Purpose: To investigate the association of hepatic and renal parameters with the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in premature infants with a gestational age ≤ 32 weeks.Methods: Medical records of 240 preterm infants were reviewed retrospectively, 85 of them were grouped as type 1, type 2 ROP and control group. These groups test results of first-month hepatic and renal function were compared for the risk of development of ROP and the development of type 1 ROP.Results: In this study, 12, 35 and 38 infants were enrolled in the type 1, type 2 ROP and control group, respectively. The average gestational age and birth weight were higher; however, the duration of oxygen treatment was lower in the control group (p<0.001). The blood glucose level was significantly higher in the type 1 ROP group than in the other groups (p=0.023). The mean of total serum bilirubin of the type 1 ROP group was significantly lower than those of the type 2 ROP and control group (p=0.032). Proteinuria was present in 85.7% of preterms with treatment-requiring ROP and proteinuria increased the risk of ROP by 3.9 times (OR with 95% CI: 3.9 (1.19-12.75), p=0.042).Conclusion: We found significantly higher blood glucose and lower total bilirubin level in the type 1 ROP group. Moreover, our findings suggest that proteinuria seems to be a new and important risk factor for both ROP and type 1 ROP in preterm infants.