Baby blindness is one of many complications that can occur during childbirth, but has been recently been linked to injuries allegedly caused by medical malpractice. This official named of the condition is known as retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), also called Terry syndrome.

This condition is an eyes disease that is somewhat common in premature or small weight infants. Typically babies born before 31 weeks of pregnancy and weighing less than three pounds are the most at risk for baby blindness.

Even though this condition often resolves itself within the first few weeks after the baby’s birth for most babies born with the condition, there are approximately 500 cases of baby blindness caused by ROP per year. If diagnosed at an early stage this condition can be treated, making it vital for doctors to check for any signs of retinopathy of prematurity.

Even though doctors should closely monitor premature babies for other immediate health concerns, medical professionals also need to be vigilant for any signs of long-term conditions that can permanently hinder the infant’s life.

In cases of malpractice, doctors would allegedly discover the retinopathy of prematurity at latent stages allegedly due to several mistakes a medical professional could make. These alleged mistakes could include:

• Not adequately explaining follow up infant care to parents
• Not giving the parents a referral to a specialist
• For failing to diagnose the condition at an early stage

In each case of late-stage retinopathy of prematurity discovered, the infant’s chance of baby blindness goes up dramatically and needs to be treated as soon as possible.

Overview of Retinopathy of Prematurity Complications

Retinopathy of Prematurity is the second highest cause of childhood blindness in America, affecting approximately 15,000 infants per year. As mentioned before, approximately 500 of these infants go on to suffer or complete baby blindness. Medical professionals advise parents that the smaller the infant is upon birth, the higher the likelihood of retinopathy of prematurity.

This condition occurs to abnormal blood vessels developing in and the retina, which eventually compromises the brain’s communication with the eyes. The abnormal blood vessels are fragile and often leak, which resulting in the retina from detaching from its position and causing blindness and eyesight damage.

Oftentimes the infants diagnosed with retinopathy of prematurity are in either stage 1 or 2, in which treatment can be administered to prevent baby blindness. Medical professionals often retinopathy of premature stages based on the rate of abnormal blood vessel growth and how badly detached the retina is.

It is important to note that infants who suffer from retinopathy of prematurity, are at higher risk for other eyesight disorders including: myopia, crossed eyes, lazy eye, and glaucoma. Due to the severity of this condition, it is important for medical professionals to properly diagnose the retinopathy of prematurity.

Parents who believe their infant could have avoided baby blindness, may be able to file legal action against their physicians.