After discharge from neonatal care, specialized follow-up is recommended to maintain the care of at-risk newborns.
Based on their individual risk factors, specialized follow-up of babies helps maintain survival and allows for early detection, therapeutic management, and timely intervention of certain consequences associated with perinatal disorders that are not detected in the early stages.
Based on the highest level of evidence available, the Pan American Health Organization's Clinical Practice Guidelines recommend that the first ROP screening test be performed according to a schedule that considers gestational age and the time of the first ROP screening. In all cases, newborns at risk of ROP should have at least one ROP screening before being discharged from the neonatal unit.
Given their social and biological risk factors, premature, small, or sick newborns must meet certain criteria for safe hospital discharge.