Eye movements and binocular function in low birthweight teenagers

Purpose: To assess eye movements and binocular function in 14-year-olds with very low birthweight (VLBW: birthweight :5 1500 g) and 14-year-olds born at term but small for gestational age (SGA: birthweight < 10th percentile) in a population-based study. Methods: Ophthalmological examinations including measurements of heterophoria/tropia, near point of convergence, accommodative amplitude, stereopsis, nystagmus, saccades and smooth pursuit were performed in 51 adolescents with VLBW, 58 adolescents born SGA and in a control group consisting of 75 subjects of the same age. Results: Latent or manifest strabismus, poor stereopsis, poor convergence and nystagmus were all more frequent in the VLBW group than in the control group. The VLBW group did not differ from the control group regarding accommodative amplitude or saccades and smooth pursuit. The SGA population did not differ from the control group in the measured variables. Conclusions: Premature birth with VLBW affects binocular visual functions negatively in adolescence, whereas birth small for date at term does not appear to be a risk factor for impaired eye movements and binocular function.