CSIRO trial sees GPs combat diabetic retinopathy

As part of the initiative, GPs at the GP Superclinic @ Midland Railway Workshops in Perth will utilise the CSIRO’s Rote-I technology to capture high-resolution images of a patient’s retina using a low-cost retinal camera. The images will then be uploaded to a cloud-based syst where they can be accessed and assessed by an ophthalmologist rotely.CSIRO scientists will also process the retinal images using the ‘Dr.Grader’ software, which will grade the images for DR and alert the GP to patients who need referrals.According to CSIRO, the trial will be the first time that GP-led DR screening has taken place from a metro area anywhere in the world, allowing patients to have their eyes checked within minutes.The initiative is designed to reduce unnecessary specialist referrals, which can result in longer wait times and further costs. This is the first step in developing a DR screening syst that will help GPs prioritise patients for treatment and surgery to prevent disease complications, CSIRO trial leader and Rote-I developer Professor Yogi Kanagasingam said. If we can pick up early changes and provide the appropriate intervention, we can prevent blindness. Associate Professor Mark Daniell, president of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO), agreed ensuring people with diabetes received regular diabetic eye checks was incredibly important . RANZCO is committed to working collaboratively with GPs to ensure that patients receive essential eye checks and, where necessary, timely referrals, he said. We welcome moves, such as the recent addition of a Medicare it number for retinal photography and CSIRO’s GP trial, that increase access to and awareness of these tests. GP Superclinic @ Midland Railway Workshops director Dr Amitha Preetham, added, This project will provide a breakthrough in the early detection and diagnosis of DR in primary care, further breaking down the barriers in specialist access to services in the community. CSIRO expects the trial will see 200 patients with diabetes over a six-month period, with DR as the primary focus.