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Study will test a new way to measure visual frailty in older adults with macular disease

Recruiting · University of Edinburgh

What this means

Researchers plan to test a tool that measures eye health and daily function in people over 60 with macular degeneration. This is a planned study that has not started collecting results, so it cannot yet show whether the tool works.

Plain-English summary written by an AI model from the registry listing.

Status
Recruiting
Who can join
Ages 60 and over
Where
2 sites

Contacts and how to join ↗

The science

Registered title
Visual Frailty in Ageing
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
observational
Conditions
Frailty, Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Functional Status, Mental Health, Depression, Anxiety, Cognitive Impairment, Visual Impairment
Sponsor
University of Edinburgh
Ages
60 Years to no maximum
Dates
First posted Sep 19, 2024 · updated Mar 4, 2026

Registry summary

The goal of this observational study is to define visual frailty and refine monitoring for an ageing population. It involves piloting a visual frailty assessment tool in a cohort of patients aged 60 and above with a known diagnosis of Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) in Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion (PAEP), Anne Rowling Clinic which is hosting the NHS Low Visual Aid Clinic, or any other NHS Lothian facility treating patients with Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD). The main questions it aims to answer are:

  • What is visual frailty and how can it be assessed or predicted in the global ageing population using visual acuity, reading performance, functional status, mental health and systemic co-morbidities?
  • What is the relationship between visual acuity, reading performance, ocular diagnosis, co-morbidities, mental health, and functional status?

Participants will have the following data collected from them from either Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion, Anne Rowling Clinic which is hosting the NHS Low Visual Aid Clinic, or any other NHS Lothian facility treating patients with Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD):

  • Visual acuity (both distance and near)
  • Reading performance
  • Functional status
  • Mental health
  • Co-morbidities

Data will also be collected remotely (by phone call) from both the participants and their carers/relatives about their perceptions of visual frailty.

Expert opinion will be sought from optometrists and ophthalmologists about the concept of visual frailty using an online survey.

Sites (2)

  • The Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
  • Anne Rowling Clinic, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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