Figure 2

A highly hypothetical pathway that may lead to a cicatricial ROP and a morphologically similar disorder FEVR. De novo gene mutation coupled with environmental factors (e. g. prematurity) may lead to the progression and development of retinal detachment in stage 4 - 5 ROP whereas prematurity alone without gene mutation may lead to an early stage of ROP that may subsequently regress to a normal condition. On the other hand, inherited or de novo mutations without prematurity may result in familial and sporadic FEVR respectively, that develop during the first decade of life.