Glaucoma Risk Prediction in ocular hypertension (GRIP)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Glaucoma Risk Prediction in ocular hypertension (GRIP): a cohort study using electronic medical records to validate a risk predictor and determine the cost-effectiveness of different monitoring schemes according to risk of conversion to glaucoma
IRAS ID
296375
Contact name
Augusto Azuara-Blanco
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Queen's University Belfast
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Glaucoma is a common eye condition that can lead to loss of vision if not identified and treated early.
One factor which can increase the chance of developing glaucoma is ocular hypertension (high eye Pressure). Eye pressure is considered to be high if it is above 21 mmHg. In the UK around 1.3 million adults have ocular hypertension, and although many of these people will not develop glaucoma, treatment may be required to stop this happening.
Current guidance in the UK recommends treatment with eye drops if the eye pressure is
greater than 24 mmHg. For patients, treatment means having laser treatment and/or using eye drops on a daily and lifelong basis.
Having a tool that can help doctors identify those at the greatest risk of progressing from ocular hypertension to glaucoma would both support clinical decision-making, and improve information that can be given to patients regarding the status of their condition. Although a ‘glaucoma risk calculator’
has previously been developed from data from two trials (called OHTS-EGPS), the National Institute for Heath and Care Excellence (NICE) does not recommend this for use in the NHS, because it is biased and has not been tested in UK patients.
Our research will validate and improve the OHTS-EGPS risk calculator in a UK population and investigate if it is valuable to treat people with IOP of 22 or 23 mmHg. For this purpose we will review the NHS electronic medical records of over 23,000 people who have ocular hypertension and have been monitored at eleven hospital eye services across the UK. By reviewing vision tests (called visual field tests) we will be able to determine whether glaucoma developed. We will then explore the value for the NHS of using a UK validated risk prediction tool for different follow-up intervals, according to risk.REC name
East of England - Essex Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/EE/0109
Date of REC Opinion
27 May 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion