Grating acuity and visual-field development in children with intraventricular hemorrhage

Abstract

Visual development was studied in 171 preterm children who had intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and in 73 healthy preterm (HPT) children who did not develop IVH. Binocular grating acuity was assessed at age 1 month; monocular grating acuity and binocular visual-field extent were assessed at 4, 8, 12, 17, 24, 30, 36, and 48 months; and monocular H, O, T, V letter recognition acuity was tested at 36 and 48 months. A significantly greater proportion of IVH subjects than HPT subjects had ocular abnormalities. IVH subjects had significantly poorer grating acuity than HPT subjects at 1, 4, 8, 36, and 48 months, poorer recognition acuity than HPT subjects at 36 and 48 months, and smaller average field extent than HPT subjects at 4, 12, and 17 months. Acuity deficits were not related to grade of IVH or to the presence of periventricular leukomalacia, but may have been associated with the presence of ocular abnormalities or cerebral palsy in some IVH subjects.