Blood rheology and retinopathy in premature infants with very low birth weight

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Bohler, T. | Wagner, S. | Seiberth, V. | Linderkamp, O.

Affiliations: Department of Neonatology, Children's Hospital at Mannheim, University of Heidelberg im Neuenheimer Feld 150, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany | Department of Ophthalmology at Mannheim, University of Heidelberg im Neuenheimer Feld 150, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany

Abstract: Impaired retinal blood flow may be involved in the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). We investigated hemorheological parameters in 44 premature infants (birth weight 610 to 2010 g, gestational age 25 to 34 weeks) at a postnatal age of 6 weeks. 25 infants showed no evidence of ROP and 7 developed ROP stage I (group' A: no-or-mild ROP, n = 32). Five infants developed ROP stage II and 7 ROP stage III (group B: moderate to severe ROP, n = 12). Plasma viscosity increased with increasing ROP severity and was significantly higher in group B than in group A (1.19 ± 0.06 vs. 1.00 ± 0.02 mPas; p = 0.0005, mean ± SEM). Plasma IgM was higher in group B patients (0.58 ± 0.08 vs. 0.47 ± 0.03 gil; p = 0.016) and RBC aggregation index was slightly increased in group B when compared to group A (6.33 ± 1.17 vs. 5.40 ± 0.49; P = 0.055). These data suggest that elevated plasma viscosity and RBC aggregation may be involved in the development of ROP.

Keywords: retinopathy of prematurity, plasma viscosity, RBC aggregation

DOI: 10.3233/CH-1995-15303

Journal: Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 305-309, 1995