Understanding Your Child's Eyes
Helping ROP Patients Nationwide
If your infant has been identified as at risk for developing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) or has been diagnosed with ROP, he or she should be monitored by a specialized ophthalmologist regularly—at least two to three times a week. Retinopathy of prematurity develops and advances rapidly. Without this frequent screening, the condition could quickly worsen to a stage where vision loss or blindness cannot be prevented—where the retina has already detached or started to detach.
Doctors Want to Avoid Retinal Detachment
Special treatments, such as laser therapy or cryotherapy may be used to treat ROP. The objective of all such screening and treatment is to prevent retinal detachment. Retinal detachment is what causes blindness in infants with retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Once the retina has detached—peeled away from the surrounding tissue—it is almost inevitable that sight will be lost in the affected eye.
The Retina and Vision
The retina is a layer of tissue on the back wall of the eye. It sends visual signals to the brain via the optic nerve for interpretation. The retina is an integral aspect of vision. If it peels away from the wall of the eye, it can no longer send signals to the brain about any visual information—causing permanent blindness.
Getting Help After Infant Blindness
Special medical care must be given to premature babies and babies born with a low birth weight. Failure to do so can result in ROP-induced blindness. Freidin - Dobrinsky, together with co-counsel, recently recovered a $38 million dollar verdict on behalf of twin boys who developed ROP as a result of medical negligence.
To discuss your situation with an experienced and knowledgeable personal injury and medical malpractice attorney, contact us. Our lawyers offer a free initial consultation to anyone with a potential medical negligence claim involving ROP and infant blindness. You will owe no fees unless we obtain financial compensation for you. Although we are based in South Florida, we help ROP victims throughout the United States.