The overall aim of the PANDA study is to develop objective measures for use as biomarkers in studies relating to cerebral visual impairment (CVI). 

CACH Team: Cathy Williams, Rosie Clarke & Rose Watanabe

The first part of the PANDA study was to collect images of the retina  from healthy children, with a new hand-held child-friendly scanner. The scanner was provided by the University of  Bristol and the study was funded by Fight for Sight.

98 children aged 0-11yearrs were recruited and 92 were successfully scanned. I All children had tests of their visual function and 40 children (aged 4yrs or older) had additional images taken by a Spectralis retinal scanner which is usually used for adults.

Analysis of the images is ongoing and will compare the results for the thickness of each of the 10  retinal layers with the child’s age, visual acuity glasses prescription and where available with the Spectralis scans.