Objective To determine the incidence and clinical features of, and risk factors for, retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in Korean infants with birthweight (BW) >1500 g.

Methods A total of 201 consecutive infants with BW >1500 g from January 2009 to December 2013 were included. The location and maximal stage of retinopathy observed were recorded for each infant. The associated systemic and maternal risk factors in infants with mild or absent ROP were compared with those in infants with treatment-requiring ROP.

Results The total incidence of ROP was 11.94% and that of treatment-requiring ROP was 3.98%. Two patients with gestational age (GA) >32 weeks and BW >1500 g had treatment-requiring ROP. 15 eyes from eight infants with type I ROP required laser photocoagulation. The mean BWs and GAs in the treatment-requiring ROP group were significantly lower than those in the no or mild ROP group. Total duration of oxygen supplementation, surfactant usage, respiratory distress syndrome, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, antibiotic use for more than 14 days and the number of ROP-associated risk factors significantly increased the likelihood of treatment-requiring ROP (p=0.002, p=0.008, p=0.008, p=0.000, p=0.015, and p=0.004, respectively).

Conclusion Our study confirmed that treatment-requiring ROP does occur in infants with BW >1500 g. To avoid overlooking infants with vision-threatening ROP, an evaluation of the data from larger BW preterm infants is advisable so that screening guidelines in neonatal care units may be refined.