Dataset Information

Association between sepsis and retinopathy of prematurity: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To explore the association between sepsis and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in premature infants.

Design

A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Data sources

We performed a systematic search of PubMed, the Cochrane Library and Embase from 1 January, 2000, to 1 January, 2018, with no language restrictions and reported the relationship between sepsis and ROP.

Eligibility criteria

Original observational studies, including cohort studies and case-control studies.

Data extraction and synthesis

Two reviewers independently completed the study selection and data extraction. The OR and corresponding 95% CI were used to measure the risk of sepsis in patients with ROP. The heterogeneity between studies was evaluated using Cochran's Q test and the I² statistic. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was adopted to evaluate the quality of each of the included studies, and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach was used to assess the quality of the evidence.

Results

Sixteen studies with a total sample size of 12 466 premature infants and 2494 cases of ROP were included in this meta-analysis. Adjusted analysis showed that sepsis was closely related to any stage of ROP (OR = 1.57, 95% CI 1.31 to 1.89) and severe stage of ROP (OR = 2.33, 95% CI 1.21 to 4.51) in premature infants, with 56.3% and 81.8% heterogeneity, respectively. Subgroup analyses showed that heterogeneity was obvious in prospective cohort studies (I² = 62.1%, p<0.001). In a sensitivity analysis, we found that removing any single study did not significantly change the overall effect value. The quality of the evidence was rated as low for both any stage of ROP and severe stage of ROP.

Conclusions

Sepsis increases the risk of ROP in preterm infants. However, considering that all included studies are observational and causality can rarely be established, additional evidence is needed to substantiate this finding and provide advice for practice.

SUBMITTER: Wang X

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6537987 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Background: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a major cause of childhood blindness. Antenatal corticosteroids (ACS) exposure is known to ameliorate the risk of and mortality of neonatal morbidities. However, the effect of ACS on ROP development is currently unknown. We conducted a meta-analysis with up-to-date evidence to assess the association between ACS exposure and the development of ROP in at-risk preterm infants. Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched from inception to May 2021, supplemented with manual search from reference lists. Studies with a control group reporting ROP rate in ACS-exposed infants were included. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated utilizing a random-effects model. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used for assessment of risk of bias in the included studies. Meta-regressions were performed to explore the predictive role of confounders for between-study variance. Results: A total of 63 studies, involving 196,264 infants, were included. Meta-analysis showed ACS exposure was not associated with ROP occurrence (uOR 0.92, 95% CI 0.80-1.07; aOR 0.87, 95% CI 0.7-1.08). Results from extremely immature subgroups revealed significant reduced risks of ROP occurrence in ACS-exposed infants. ACS exposure was associated with significantly lower odds of ROP progression in adjusted analysis (aOR 0.48, 95% CI 0.26-0.89) instead of unadjusted analysis (uOR 0.86, 95% CI 0.68-1.08). Meta-regression showed birth weight and patent ductus arteriosus of the cohort were associated with ROP occurrence, sample size and study design strongly associated with ROP progression in ACS-exposed infants. Conclusion: ACS treatment may decrease, but not prevent, the severity of ROP. Findings from severe ROP should be interpreted with caution owing to limited studies and the possibility of false-positive results. Considering the particular benefits in extremely immature infants, we recommend routine usage of ACS in mothers with threatened delivery to this particular birth cohort to prevent ROP occurrence. Future studies adjusting for major confounders are warranted to mitigate risk of bias in such observational evidence.