About Emily's Eyes
The Eye
When a baby is growing inside it's mother, she is in a protected environment. The baby develops slowly, until she is able to continue growing outside the mother. When a baby is born prematurely, the retnas of the baby's eyes are not fully developed.
The retina is the inner lining on the back wall of the eyeball. The retnina is the part of the eye that receives sight through the pupil and sends it to the brain. (Think of the eye as a camera and the retina the film.) The retina receives blood through blood vessels. These blood vessels are the last part of the eye to develop just before a full-term baby is born.
What is Retinopathy of Prematurity?
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is the name of a disease that frequently affects the eyes of very small premature babies when the blood vessels in the eyes do not develop the way they should. In spite of the best care hospitals can give, ROP still develops in certain infants. We have noticed that ROP is more likely in the very smallest babies who have the most complications. Signs are usually apparent while they are still in the ICN.
ROP can cause blindness, but not for most babies0. If ROP does develop, one of the following may occur:
1) In the majority of premature babies with ROP, The blood vessels that did not grow correctly heal completely before the baby is one year old.
2) In some infants, the blood vessels that did not grow correctly leaving scaring in the retina when they heal. These babies my have to wear glasses because they are nearsighted (myopic). The may also develop lazy eye (strabismus). Medical care can usually correct these problems if the child is seen by an eye physician at an early age. It is important that an ophthalmologist continue to examine the child's eyes regularly to be sure they reach school age with the best vision possible.
Sometimes, ROP leaves more sever scaring in the retina that might cause eye problems that cannot be fixed by glasses or even by surgery. To control the damage as much as possible, these children need medical eye care regularly for the rest of their life.
3) When scaring in the eye from ROP is the most severe, the blood vessels in the retina keep on growing incorrectly and form a large amount of scar tissue, which can shrink and pull the retina loose from the inside of the eye. This is called retinal detachment. Retinal detachment usually means that the baby will not be able to see well or she may become blind. This occurs in approximately 5% of infants with ROP.
When a baby is growing inside it's mother, she is in a protected environment. The baby develops slowly, until she is able to continue growing outside the mother. When a baby is born prematurely, the retnas of the baby's eyes are not fully developed.
The retina is the inner lining on the back wall of the eyeball. The retnina is the part of the eye that receives sight through the pupil and sends it to the brain. (Think of the eye as a camera and the retina the film.) The retina receives blood through blood vessels. These blood vessels are the last part of the eye to develop just before a full-term baby is born.
What is Retinopathy of Prematurity?
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is the name of a disease that frequently affects the eyes of very small premature babies when the blood vessels in the eyes do not develop the way they should. In spite of the best care hospitals can give, ROP still develops in certain infants. We have noticed that ROP is more likely in the very smallest babies who have the most complications. Signs are usually apparent while they are still in the ICN.
ROP can cause blindness, but not for most babies0. If ROP does develop, one of the following may occur:
1) In the majority of premature babies with ROP, The blood vessels that did not grow correctly heal completely before the baby is one year old.
2) In some infants, the blood vessels that did not grow correctly leaving scaring in the retina when they heal. These babies my have to wear glasses because they are nearsighted (myopic). The may also develop lazy eye (strabismus). Medical care can usually correct these problems if the child is seen by an eye physician at an early age. It is important that an ophthalmologist continue to examine the child's eyes regularly to be sure they reach school age with the best vision possible.
Sometimes, ROP leaves more sever scaring in the retina that might cause eye problems that cannot be fixed by glasses or even by surgery. To control the damage as much as possible, these children need medical eye care regularly for the rest of their life.
3) When scaring in the eye from ROP is the most severe, the blood vessels in the retina keep on growing incorrectly and form a large amount of scar tissue, which can shrink and pull the retina loose from the inside of the eye. This is called retinal detachment. Retinal detachment usually means that the baby will not be able to see well or she may become blind. This occurs in approximately 5% of infants with ROP.
posted by JenninNJ @ 6:10 AM
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