MacPI Retinal camera
EARLIER THIS year, celebrated British actor Dame Judi Dench revealed she was battling age- related macular degeneration (AMD), a debilitating eye condition. AMD is the leading cause of blindness in older people in the developed world and is not curable. It is preventable, however, provided early signs of degeneration are picked up. This is easier said than done.
The measuring systems currently on the market rely on the patient to give feedback during an eye test. This can be highly subjective and dependent on how well the patient can communicate the relevant information. The test takes a long time and involves a certain amount of discomfort.
A pioneering device developed by Dr Andrew O’Brien and Dr Conor Leahy of the applied optics team in the department of physics at NUI Galway overcomes all these obstacles in one go.
The pair have developed a sophisticated retinal camera that measures the macula pigment in seconds to assess the risk of someone developing AMD. There is no discomfort and no need for patient feedback.
“The level of pigment will tell us the risk of someone getting AMD. The more pigment you have, the greater the protection on the retina and consequently less risk of developing AMD,” O’Brien says.
“The devices on the market are best described as ‘subjective’ where ours is ‘objective’ and gives fast, accurate readings. About 80,000 Irish people suffer from AMD and there are an estimated additional 30,000 people here who have it but don’t know.
“When people start noticing the signs it’s too late.”
O’Brien became interested in AMD when preparing his PhD. Having finished his research in 2008 he felt it had commercial potential and began working on proof of concept with the support of Enterprise Ireland.
The patent-protected device, which is called MacPI, is now on the brink of large-scale production.
By the time the rigours of regulation have been gone through, this process will have taken about two years. The main markets for the device will be outside Ireland.
A spin-out company, Ailia Eye Tech, has recently been established to commercialise MacPI and O’Brien says the company is now looking for investors.
“The product was given an independent trial by the school of optometry at DIT and needless to say, we were very pleased when it proved to be more accurate, much faster and much easier on the patient than the current market- leading devices,” he says.