- Home
- Medical news & Guidelines
- Anesthesiology
- Cardiology and CTVS
- Critical Care
- Dentistry
- Dermatology
- Diabetes and Endocrinology
- ENT
- Gastroenterology
- Medicine
- Nephrology
- Neurology
- Obstretics-Gynaecology
- Oncology
- Ophthalmology
- Orthopaedics
- Pediatrics-Neonatology
- Psychiatry
- Pulmonology
- Radiology
- Surgery
- Urology
- Laboratory Medicine
- Diet
- Nursing
- Paramedical
- Physiotherapy
- Health news
- Fact Check
- Bone Health Fact Check
- Brain Health Fact Check
- Cancer Related Fact Check
- Child Care Fact Check
- Dental and oral health fact check
- Diabetes and metabolic health fact check
- Diet and Nutrition Fact Check
- Eye and ENT Care Fact Check
- Fitness fact check
- Gut health fact check
- Heart health fact check
- Kidney health fact check
- Medical education fact check
- Men's health fact check
- Respiratory fact check
- Skin and hair care fact check
- Vaccine and Immunization fact check
- Women's health fact check
- AYUSH
- State News
- Andaman and Nicobar Islands
- Andhra Pradesh
- Arunachal Pradesh
- Assam
- Bihar
- Chandigarh
- Chattisgarh
- Dadra and Nagar Haveli
- Daman and Diu
- Delhi
- Goa
- Gujarat
- Haryana
- Himachal Pradesh
- Jammu & Kashmir
- Jharkhand
- Karnataka
- Kerala
- Ladakh
- Lakshadweep
- Madhya Pradesh
- Maharashtra
- Manipur
- Meghalaya
- Mizoram
- Nagaland
- Odisha
- Puducherry
- Punjab
- Rajasthan
- Sikkim
- Tamil Nadu
- Telangana
- Tripura
- Uttar Pradesh
- Uttrakhand
- West Bengal
- Medical Education
- Industry
Low fetal haemoglobin levels linked to a higher risk of retinopathy of prematurity, study finds
USA: A new study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology suggests that low levels of fetal haemoglobin (HbF) may increase the risk of developing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in preterm infants.
The oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve of fetal haemoglobin (HbF) may affect systemic oxygenation and the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). The study aims to determine the effects of HbF levels on systemic oxygenation and ROP development.
The prospective study called PaclFiHER Report conducted at the Johns Hopkins NICU enrolled 64 preterm infants with HbF measured at birth, 31, 34, and 37 weeks post-menstrual age (PMA), complete blood gas and SpO2 recorded up to 42 weeks PMA, and at least one ROP exam.
The study had the following key takeaways:
- The results showed higher HbF levels were associated with significantly higher SpO2 and lower PCO2, and FiO2 from birth to 31 weeks PMA and 31 to 34 weeks PMA.
- Higher median FiO2 was required for HbF in the lowest tercile from birth to 31 weeks and 31 to 34 weeks PMA to maintain oxygen saturation goals set by the neonatal intensive care unit.
- Preterm infants with ROP had lower indices of systemic oxygenation, as measured by median SpO2 and PCO2, and lower HbF levels up to 34 weeks PMA.
According to the researchers, the study's findings suggest that low levels of HbF correlated with poor oxygenation indices and increased the risk of developing ROP. They suggested that oxygen saturation goals to prevent ROP may need to incorporate the relative amount of HbF in preterm infants.
Dr. Kim Jiramongkolchai the study's lead author, added, “These findings suggest that HbF levels may play a role in retinopathy of prematurity development and can potentially inform how we manage these critically ill infants. Larger sample sizes and longer follow-up periods in future studies are needed to confirm these findings.”
Reference:
Jiramongkolchai K., Repka M., Tian J., Aucott S., Shepard J., Collins M., Clemens J., Feller M., Burd I., Roizenblatt M., Smith K., Arevalo JF., Gehlbach P., Handa J.; Effects of fetal haemoglobin on systemic oxygenation in preterm infants and the development of retinopathy of prematurity PacIFiHER Report No. 2; British Journal of Ophthalmology2023; 2023.03.20 doi: 10.1136/bjo-2023-323354
Dr. Mahalakshmi Sivashankaran joined Medical Dialogues as an Intern in 2023. She is a BDS graduate from Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Mangalore Batch 2022, and worked as a Junior Resident at VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital at the Department of Dental Surgery till January 2023. She has completed a Diploma in Executive Healthcare management from the Loyola Institute of Business Administration, developing skills in Healthcare Management and Administration. She covers several medical specialties including Dental, ENT, Diagnostics, Pharmacology, Neurology, and Cardiology.
Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: drkohli@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751