Retinal Imaging in the Edinburgh arm of PREVENT
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Multi-modal retinal imaging in the Edinburgh arm of the PREVENT (PREVention of dementia by ENvironmental intervention and Therapy) study to investigate imaging biomarkers that may help predict dementia onset in later life
IRAS ID
187911
Contact name
Thomas J MacGillivray
Contact email
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
UKCRN ID , 16245
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
There is increasing evidence that examining the eye can tell us a great deal of information about our health. Changes in the eye can sometimes be observed years before other more serious symptoms develop. The eye and the brain share some common anatomical features such as small blood vessels and a blood-tissue barrier. We propose studying what eyes can reveal about the risk of developing dementia later in life by analysing images of the back of the eye or retina from simple non-invasive eye scanning. Measuring these images with computer software it might be possible to identify subtle markers or abnormalities which may act as early indicators of changes in the brain. We will explore the hypothesis that features of the retina will be significantly different in mid-life in persons at high risk of late-life dementia from persons at low risk.
The aim of this study is to capture images of the eye from consenting adults participating in the PREVENT study in Edinburgh using imaging machines in the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic and the Clinical Research Imaging Centre (CRIC) at the Royal Infirmary site, Little France. We will then study the data and investigate whether measurements of features at the back of the eye can act as early indicators of brain changes and dementia.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 01
REC reference
15/SS/0146
Date of REC Opinion
28 Sep 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion