Effect of anti-VEGF treatment on retinopathy of prematurity in Zone Ⅱ Stage 3+

AIM: To evaluate the effect of intravitreal ranibizumab injection for retinopathy of prematurity（ROP） in Zone Ⅱ Stage 3;.METHODS: Data was collected for ROP patients with Zone Ⅱ Stage 3;who received intravitreal ranibizumab injections between October 2014 and Janu ary 2017 at the Department of Ophthalmology in our hospital. No prior laser or other intravitreal treatment was done. Prior to the intervention and at each follow-up visit, fundus examination was performed. Gestational age at birth, sex, birth weight, ROP zone, ROP stage, post menstrual age（PMA） at treatment, and follow-up pe riod were recorded. The final clinical status of the retina was evaluated for each patient. The primary outcome mea sures included ROP recurrences requiring re-treatment, complete or incomplete peripheral vascularization.RESULTS: Eighty-six eyes of 46 premature infants with Zone Ⅱ Stage 3;ROP were enrolled in the study. The mean gestational age at birth was 28.18±1.67（range: 25 to 33）wk and the mean birth weight was 1070.57±226.85（range: 720.00 to 1650.00） g. The mean PMA at treatment was 38.32±2.99（range: 32.29 to 46.00）wk. Seventy-one eyes（82.56%） were treated success fully with intravitreal ranibizumab as monotherapy. Fifteen eyes（17.44%） developed recurrent disease. The mean interval between the treatment and retreatment was 5.96±3.22（range: 1.86 to 11.71）wk. All eyes vascularized into zone Ⅲ at the end of the study and among them 62 eyes（72.09%） achieved complete vascu larization.CONCLUSION: Intravitreal ranibizumab injection is an effective treatment in Zone Ⅱ Stage 3;ROP patients. More patients with longer follow-up duration are necessary to confirm the safety and efficacy of this treatment.