ROP Screening: Comparison of Pain Using Two Eyelid Retractors

Overview

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a major cause of blindness in the world. Initial ocular examinations of infants at risk for ROP are generally conducted between 4-6 weeks postnatally. These exams are vital to protect preterm infants from blindness, but these exams have been shown to cause pain in this population. Currently two speculums are utilized; the spring loaded Alfonso and the screw loaded Cook eyelid speculum. There is no schedule for who receives which speculum during their exam. The objective of this study is to evaluate the pain response in the neonatal population, 32 weeks or less, and less than or equal to 1500 grams, undergoing a retractor eye exam for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening. The primary study aim is to compare the N-PASS pain score between neonates who received a ROP eye exam with the spring loaded Alfonso and the screw loaded Cook eye speculums.

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a major cause of blindness in the world. It is a vasoproliferative retinopathy that affects premature and low birth-weight infants. Initial ocular examinations of infants at risk for ROP are generally conducted between 4-6 weeks postnatally. These exams are vital to protect preterm infants from blindness, but these exams have been shown to cause pain in this population. Only two studies alluded to the impact of the eyelid speculum on the pain response and score. Specifically, Hered and Gyland, questioned whether the Alfonso, spring loaded, eyelid lid speculum due to its forceful opening of the eyelid causes more pain. However, no studies were found that included the type of eyelid speculum as a variable of study. In addition, no studies have compared the effect of different eyelid speculums on the pain response. Currently two speculums are utilized; the spring loaded Alfonso and the screw loaded Cook eyelid speculum. There is no schedule for who receives which speculum during their exam. The investigators team recognizes that the insertion of the eyelid speculum causes a pain response in these infants and would like to determine if there is a difference in the level of that response between the two speculums. The investigators study will test the difference in pain response when using either a spring loaded eyelid speculum or screw loaded speculum during an ROP exam on premature infants. The objective of this study is to evaluate the pain response in the neonatal population, 32 weeks or less, and less than or equal to 1500 grams, undergoing a retractor eye exam for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening. The primary study aim is to compare the N-PASS pain score between neonates who received a ROP eye exam with the spring loaded Alfonso and the screw loaded Cook eye speculums.