Visual frailty in ageing
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Seeing through their eyes - towards defining visual frailty in ageing
IRAS ID
338463
Contact name
Godfrey Wanok
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 7 months, 30 days
Research summary
Visual frailty is a new term that has not been explored in depth by researchers but it is known to manifest in the elderly population as it affects the overall quality of life of individuals. While there are many tools for diagnosis of general frailty, little is known about the best definition of visual frailty and how to identify it in the ageing population. This project will develop a comprehensive definition of visual frailty and a tool will be designed to measure it using four components of reading performance, co-morbidities, mental health and quality of life in the ageing population.
This is a mixed methods observational cross-sectional study that will consist of designing a tool to measure visual frailty and piloting it in a cohort of participants in the ageing population. The designed tool will be piloted in a cohort of participants who will be recruited from Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion (PAEP). This cohort will consist of elderly patients (60 years and above) diagnosed with advanced Age-related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) together with their relatives who do not have the condition.
The following data will be collected from the participants:
(i) Reading performance will be measured automatically using an electronic device.
(ii) Quality of life will be measured using a validated questionnaire.
(iii) Co-morbidities will be retrieved from their medical records
(iv) Mental health will be assessed using validated questionnaires.Some data will be collected remotely when the participants have already left the hospital premises. This will include perspectives about visual frailty.
The pilot study will require 20 participants; 10 patients with advanced Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) and 10 relatives of these patients who will be the control group.Online surveys will be used to collect expert opinions from ophthalmologists and optometrists.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 01
REC reference
24/SS/0021
Date of REC Opinion
18 Apr 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion