ROP Screening Calculator: Who to Screen, First Exam Date and Follow-up Interval (India)

Last updated: November 2026

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a leading cause of preventable childhood blindness in India, and almost all of it is caught by screening at the right time. Enter the baby's details to see whether screening is needed and when the first examination is due; then use the second tool to set the follow-up interval from the findings.

1. Who to screen and when

2. Follow-up interval from the findings

Intervals follow the American Academy of Pediatrics / AAO / AAPOS 2018 schedule, with ICROP3 (2021) terms. Type 1 ROP should be treated within 48–72 hours (ETROP). After anti-VEGF treatment, Indian guidance advises continuing examinations until at least 65 weeks postmenstrual age because late reactivation occurs.

Indian screening criteria (NNF 2020)

• Gestational age under 34 weeks.
• Birth weight under 2000 g when the gestational age is not known.
• Gestational age 34–36 weeks with any risk factor (as listed above); where records are unreliable, NICU or SCNU admission is a surrogate risk factor.

First examination: at 4 weeks of age (postnatal), but at 2–3 weeks for babies under 28 weeks' gestation, or under 1200 g when gestation is not confirmed. Many Indian units aim for day 20 to 30 of life. Screening should be done even if the baby has gone home, and parents must be told the date in writing.

For learning and quick checks only. Confirm any result that changes treatment against your own measurements, the device manufacturer's guidance and current local protocols.

Related: Retinopathy of Prematurity: ICROP3 Update, Paediatric Ophthalmology Notes: ROP, Leukocoria, PCG, Screening Schedules: DR Follow-up, ROP in India and Hydroxychloroquine, Leukocoria: A Differential. See all eye calculators and tools.

Key sources

• National Neonatology Forum of India. Clinical practice guidelines: retinopathy of prematurity, key recommendations (2020)
• Fierson WM; American Academy of Pediatrics, AAO, AAPOS, AACO. Screening examination of premature infants for retinopathy of prematurity. Pediatrics. 2018;142:e20183061
• Chiang MF, Quinn GE, Fielder AR, et al. International Classification of Retinopathy of Prematurity, Third Edition. Ophthalmology. 2021;128:e51-e68
• Early Treatment for Retinopathy of Prematurity Cooperative Group. Revised indications for the treatment of ROP. Arch Ophthalmol. 2003;121:1684-1694