Pre-term delivery and subsequent ocular development. A 7-10 year follow-up of children screened 1982-84 for ROP. 4) Oculometric - and other metric considerations.

Eighty-eight children of pre-term delivery 1982-84 (mean birthweight 1467 g, mean gestational age 31 weeks) with regular early control for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) had ophthalmic follow-up at the age of 7-10 years. Bilateral blindness appeared in four out of the 28 in the regional survey who had ROP. In the remaining 60 there had been no ROP. In this article focus is on various size parameters, general (height, weight, head circumference, interpupillary distance) and ophthalmic (corneal transversal diameter and curvature radius, axial eye measurements by ultrasound). Comparing with available standards the group average for height was 2-3 cm below the norm for age. With regard to +/- ROP, growth parameters had lower values in the subgroup with ROP. Oculometrically, there was a more curved cornea and a shorter axial length than expected from refractive value. The average values for emmetropia (n = 23) and for myopia of prematurity (6 eyes) were: refraction + 0.54 D and -7.8 D, Crad 7.58 and 7.47 mm, and axial length 22.93 and 25.3 mm, respectively.