TABLE 2.
Subgroup analysis of severe ROP risk in the ACS-exposed group.
| ROP type | Subgroup | Number of studies | OR (95%CI) | p value | I2 | P for subgroup difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Severe ROP | Mean GA | |||||
| <28 weeks | 6 | 0.67 [0.40, 1.10] | 0.11 | 30 | 0.22 | |
| ≥28 weeks | 12 | 0.97 [0.70, 1.34] | 0.86 | 62.1 | ||
| Mean BW | ||||||
| ≤1,000 g | 5 | 0.82 [0.55, 1.22] | 0.32 | 0 | 0.65 | |
| >1,000 g | 13 | 0.92 [0.69, 1.22] | 0.56 | 69.8 | ||
| Study design | ||||||
| Case-control | 23 | 0.79 [0.66, 0.94] | 0.01 | 26.9 | 0.06 | |
| Cohort | 12 | 1.14 [0.81, 1.62] | 0.44 | 79.5 | ||
| Drug type | ||||||
| Dexamethasone | 6 | 0.81 [0.46, 1.41] | 0.45 | 26.5 | 0.66 | |
| Betamethasone | 8 | 0.94 [0.66, 1.32] | 0.70 | 26.2 | ||
| ACS course | ||||||
| Complete | 11 | 0.93 [0.66, 1.32] | 0.70 | 70.1 | 0.52 | |
| Partial | 4 | 1.15 [0.67, 2.00] | 0.61 | 44.5 | ||
| Sample size | ||||||
| <500 | 22 | 0.63 [0.50, 0.80] | <0.0001 | 0 | 0.00 | |
| ≥500 | 12 | 1.28 [0.93, 1.78] | 0.14 | 91 | ||
| Economic Level | ||||||
| Developing | 18 | 0.89 [0.62, 1.28] | 0.54 | 86 | 0.91 | |
| Developed | 18 | 0.87 [0.72, 1.05] | 0.16 | 22 | ||
| Adjusted for RDS/oxygen | ||||||
| YES | 3 | 0.18 [0.04, 0.82] | 0.03 | 86 | 0.05 | |
| NO | 4 | 0.86 [0.58, 1.27] | 0.44 | 35 | ||
OR, odds ratio; CI, confidence interval; ROP, retinopathy of prematurity; ACS, antenatal corticosteroids; GA, gestational age; BW, birth weight; RDS, respiratory distress syndrome.
The bold values indicate statistically significant results.