Neonatal eye test
An eye test is performed on babies born before week 31 of pregnancy when they are 4–5 weeks old.
An hour before the eye test, the nurse will put some eye drops in the baby's eyes to widen the pupil, making it easier to see the entire fundus of the eye. Before the eye test, the ophthalmologist can give the baby some eye drops that will numb the eye so that the baby will not feel any discomfort.
After the eye test, the baby's eyes must not be exposed to direct sunlight as the pupil is dilated and cannot contract. The ophthalmologist will repeat the test every one to two weeks until the entire retina has formed blood vessels.