EDiMaD 1.1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Early Detection in Macular Disease: a Psychophysical Screening Test for neovascular age-related macular degeneration
IRAS ID
130754
Contact name
Paul Knox
Contact email
Research summary
Neovascular (“wet”) age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) is the leading cause of visual disability in developed countries. However, new drug treatments are very effective, and in many cases do not merely stop further sight loss, but improve vision. This is particularly the case where the development of nvAMD is detected early. In order to do this in the maximum number of patients, a simple, patient friendly, cost effective test is needed. We wish to investigate a handheld version of a radial shape deformation test (hRSD). Presented on an Apple Ipod Touch (an inexpensive device about the size of a mobile phone), the hRSD test measures the ability of patients to detect increasingly subtle distortions in a circle; this ability has already been shown to be affected by nvAMD. In this study we propose to recruit 202 patients being treated for nvAMD in one eye, whose other eye is disease free. We know that approximately 10% of these patients will develop nvAMD in the fellow eye within 12 months. At each treatment visit, in addition to routine care, they will complete the hRSD test. For any individual patient the study end point will be either the end of 12 months, or the development of nvAMD in their fellow eye (as detected by clinical diagnosis based on retinal examination). The data will allow us to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the hRSD test and allow comparison with other clinical vision tests and structural measurements.
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/NW/0449
Date of REC Opinion
2 Jul 2013
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion