Optic nerve sheath diameter sonography in paediatric critical care
Research type
Research Study
Full title
ONS-PCC - Optic nerve sheath diameter sonography in Paediatric Critical Care. Validity and feasibility of optic nerve sheath diameter and globe transverse diameter sonography in the paediatric critical care setting.
IRAS ID
279007
Contact name
Joshua Moorhouse
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Raised intracranial pressure (raised pressure in the compartment inside the skull) can cause brain damage and requires urgent treatment. Trying to identify raised intracranial pressure based on examination of the patient is unreliable once the fontanelle (the gap in the top of the skull) has closed at around the age of 1 year but it is possible to look for evidence of raised intracranial pressure using ultrasound.
At the back of each eye there is an optic nerve, which carries information from the eye to the brain, and is surrounded by a tough outer coating (the optic nerve sheath). When the intracranial pressure is elevated this pressure is transmitted to the optic nerve sheath, causing it to enlarge. Technological advances mean it is now possible to measure the diameter of the optic nerve sheath using ultrasound.
It is not fully clear at present what measurement range of optic nerve sheath diameter should be considered normal, or whether it is best to measure the diameter of the optic nerve sheath alone or the ratio of the sheath to the diameter of the eyeball (which can also be easily measured on ultrasound).
In our study we plan to scan the eyes of children on children's critical care and also emergency department, who do not have any suspicion for raised intracranial pressure, in order to establish a normal range for optic nerve sheath diameter and for the ratio of optic nerve sheath diameter to eyeball diameter. The scan does not hurt or cause any damage and can be done at the patient's bedside in a few minutes. If the scan is causing any distress to the child it will be abandoned.
REC name
South West - Frenchay Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/SW/0121
Date of REC Opinion
20 Sep 2021
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion