Benchmarking ROP
What does analysis of the last five years of literature on retinopathy of prematurity tell us?
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a potentially blinding disorder that principally affects prematurely born infants – the smaller a baby is at birth, the more likely it will develop ROP. The disease affects the immature retinal vasculature and can be mild (with no visual defects) or aggressive (with neovascularization) in presentation, potentially leading to retinal detachment and blindness. Prevalence varies from 5–8 percent in developed countries to up to 30 percent in developing countries.
Peripheral retinal ablation is a common approach to ROP, with scleral buckling and/or vitrectomy considered in more severe cases. Intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy has been shown to be of benefit in aggressive cases, but the ocular and systemic safety profile of these agents in infants with ROP is currently poorly characterized.
To provide insight into the past and predictions for the future, a series of metrics were applied to the last five years of the published literature. We asked:
- What are the major topics?
- Which publications have the greatest impact?
- How is the knowledge available online?
- Who are the most prolific authors?
PubMed was searched for retinopathy of prematurity with results limited to the last five years, in humans (for a clinical focus). The data were analyzed in Microsoft Excel 2013.
I spent seven years as a medical writer, writing primary and review manuscripts, congress presentations and marketing materials for numerous – and mostly German – pharmaceutical companies. Prior to my adventures in medical communications, I was a Wellcome Trust PhD student at the University of Edinburgh.
