Preventing Blindness In Premature Babies is Aim of Study

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A University at Buffalo researcher has received a $436,000, two-year grant funded by the National Eye Institute to investigate a treatment that could prevent blindness in extremely premature babies.

Called retinopathy of prematurity, the condition is characterized by excessive growth of retinal blood vessels, which can cause vision degeneration and blindness.

Degree of prematurity, heredity, and treatment of immature lungs with increased air pressure and oxygen concentration in an effort to force sufficient oxygen into the bloodstream are risk factors for the disease.

About 27,000 extremely low-weight babies are born annually in the U.S., of which approximately 20,250 survive and are at risk of developing the condition.

James D. Reynolds, UB associate professor of ophthalmology and head of pediatric ophthalmology at The Children's Hospital of Buffalo, will lead a three-center study to determine if reducing exposure of infants' eyes to light can prevent retinal destruction in these babies.

The study will involve 220 infants weighing less than 1,251 grams, or about 2 1/4 pounds, at birth. Half the patients will be randomized to wear goggles for four weeks or until the infant reaches 31 weeks of gestational age, whichever is longer. The eyes of all infants will be examined throughout the period to determine development of retinopathy.

"As techniques for managing smaller and less mature pre-term infants continue to improve, we expect to see an increase in the number of infants at risk for blindness," Reynolds said. "A preventive treatment for retinopathy of prematurity that is safe, effective, easily applied and inexpensive is needed. There is reason to believe that light reduction may be an effective preventive."

Current techniques for treating the disease and its effects, such as cryotherapy and surgery, can be destructive and haven't proved to be fully effective in preserving vision, Reynolds said.

UB and The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas each will enroll half the patients. The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston will conduct the statistical analysis. Reynolds is a resident of Amherst.