Members of the GDRRG:

Professor Peter Scanlon	Lead Researcher
Mr Quresh Mohamed	Lead Researcher
Mr Ahmed Sallam	Lead Researcher
Irene Stratton	Senior Statistician
Steve Aldington	Research Development Manager
Steve Chave	Informatics Advisor
Victoria Edgeworth	Research Coordinator
Abi Hedley	PA to Dr Scanlon

 

 Background Information:

The GDRRG researchers have been working together in the field of Diabetic Retinopathy since 1998, when they received their first R&D project grant from the South West Research Development Directorate. This was for ‘An evaluation of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of screening for diabetic retinopathy by digital imaging photography and technician ophthalmoscopy’ that reported in 2001 and whose publications included:

1. Scanlon, P. H., Malhotra, R., Thomas, G., Foy, C., Kirkpatrick, J. N., Lewis-Barned, N., Harney, B. & Aldington, S. J. The effectiveness of screening for diabetic retinopathy by digital imaging photography and technician ophthalmoscopy. Diabetic Medicine. 2003; 20 (6), 467-474.
2. Scanlon PH, Malhotra R, Greenwood RH, Aldington SJ, Foy C, Flatman M, et al. Comparison of two reference standards in validating two field mydriatic digital photography as a method of screening for diabetic retinopathy. Br J Ophthalmol 2003;87(10):1258-63.
3. Scanlon PH, Foy C, Malhotra R, Aldington SJ. The influence of age, duration of diabetes, cataract, and pupil size on image quality in digital photographic retinal screening. Diabetes Care 2005; 28(10): 2448-53

 In 2003, the English National Screening Programme for Diabetic Retinopathy was announced and the team in Gloucestershire were given a lead role in the planning and implementation. This attracted experienced researchers in the field to relocate and to work within the Gloucestershire team. Appointments included:

• Irene M Stratton who moved from her post as Senior Medical Statistician at the Clinical Trials Unit in Oxford where she had worked for many years on the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS)
• Stephen J Aldington who moved from his post as Senior Manager responsible for the Retinopathy Grading Centre at Imperial College London, where his team had been responsible for the grading of images from the landmark UKPDS study and several large pharmaceutical company studies including DIRECT.
• Young talented Consultant Ophthalmologists who had experience in research such as Mr Quresh Mohamed and Mr Ahmed Sallam.

 

Current Research:

 The GDRRG team has gained approval as a European Vision Institute Clinical Trial Site Centre of Excellence and is developing a research portfolio that includes:

1. Diabetes Research Network (DRN) Writing Group (joint Lead Applicant)
2. Research for Patient Benefit Programme grant ‘Understanding factors leading to low uptake of diabetic retinopathy screening in Primary Care’ (Lead Applicant)
3. Health Technology Assessment Programme grant ‘Development of a cost-effectiveness model for optimisation of the screening interval in diabetic retinopathy screening’ (Lead Applicant).
4. European Commission (Framework 7) - European Consortium for the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy (EUROCONDOR). Collaborative first clinical trial using eye drops for treatment of the early stages of DR. (UK Portfolio Lead).
5. Diabetes UK. Prediction of retinopathy risk in a cohort of young people with type 1 diabetes. (Co-applicant).

 The GDRRG are also involved in pharmaceutical company research:

1. a study of patients with Branch & Central Retinal Vein Occlusion 
2. counting microaneurysms in a diabetic retinopathy trial
3. an analysis of Quality of Life baseline data

 

Research Output:

During the last 10 years, GDRRG have published 20 articles in peer reviewed journals, 25 posters at major conferences, 2 books and 5 chapters for books. Publications from the individual researchers considerably exceed this number.