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A breakthrough technique that can use a simple eye test to save the lives and limbs of diabetics is being advanced in Australia by Queensland University of Technology Research Professor Nathan Efron.
Professor Efron has come to QUT's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation from the UK, to develop the use of an optical instrument capable of looking at the cornea - the clear window at the front of the eye - under high magnification to assess a painful condition known as diabetic neuropathy.
QUT has purchased a corneal confocal microscope (CCM), one of only a handful in the country, to further research and validate the diagnostic technique.
"Diabetic neuropathy is a nerve disorder caused by diabetes," Professor Efron said.
"It is a significant clinical problem which affects up to 50 per cent of diabetics and which currently has no effective therapy.
"It can be very painful and can also result in numbness and tingling to the hands, feet, or legs and in advanced cases is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide."
He said current tests for assessing the state of the nerves in diabetic neuropathy involved taking a skin biopsy from the patient's foot and then running tests which could take up to three days.
"Using an optical instrument known as a corneal confocal microscope (CCM), diabetic neuropathy can now be diagnosed in a couple of minutes.
"By looking closely at the nerve fibres in the eye we can see whether there is damage to the nerves and thus pinpoint whether or not a patient is suffering diabetic neuropathy.
"The benefits of this new technology is that is it instant, non-invasive and painless, and it appears that it can diagnose this condition much earlier than is currently being done."
Professor Efron said it was important to detect diabetic neuropathy in its early stages so steps could be taken to improve the patient's diabetic control and thus prevent long-term damage.
"We no longer have to wait for patients to feel numbness or tingling in their limbs. Instead, we can now screen for it by looking into the patient's eyes."
He said by assessing the extent of nerve damage in the eye, the severity of the condition could be determined.
"The accurate detection, characterisation and quantification of this condition are important to define at risk patients, anticipate deterioration, monitor progression and assess new therapies," he said.
While the optical instrument was developed in the 1980s, it has only been in the last few years that the CCM has been used to test diabetic neuropathy.
Professor Efron, who is recognised internationally as a leader in the advancement of this technique, hopes to establish a testing centre in conjunction with the Princess Alexandra Hospital.
Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here. ' |
