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¹M.D., Special Kayseri EyeHospital, Kayseri/TURKEY
²M.D. Professor, Kayseri University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Ophthalmology, Kayseri/TURKEY Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), primarily affects premature infants and it can cause severe visual disability in childhood. It is characterized by anormal retinal neovascularizations and the main reason of blindness in children in developing countries. The well known risk factors are premature birth, low birth weight, high oxygen therapy ; the others are asidozis, blood transfusion, intracranial hemorrhage, multiple birhts and etnicity. The pathogenezis of ROP occurs in two phases. In the first phase there is relative hyperoxia and obliteration in vessels, in the second phase there is neovascularization which is induced by hypoxia. Neovascularization, occured by interruption of normal angiogenesis, reaches vitreus. Anormal fibrovasküler doku develops and it causes retinal traction and detachment. In this review we discuss risk factors, epidemiology, pathogenesis, screening and management of ROP. Keywords : Retinopathy of prematurity, ethyopathogenesis, treatment