Dark Adaptation Research

Dark Adaptation Study for the Detection of AMD

This pivotal study of dark adaptation was conducted at Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and Penn State universities. It found the AdaptDx^® Rapid Test for dark adaptation is a highly accurate measure of dark adaptation speed, which gives a clear, objective measurement of retinal function with 90% sensitivity and 90% specificity for the presence of AMD.

Research & Education

Leading institutions have used AdaptDx technology for research and education, including:

Major Study Participation

AdaptDx was chosen as a clinical endpoint in two current multi-year international studies of macular degeneration—MACUSTAR and ARIS.

MACUSTAR

The AdaptDx was selected as a key testing device in the MACUSTAR project, a five-year study aimed at reducing the disease burden of AMD worldwide. Currently funded with more than 16 million euros from the European Union and leading European pharmaceutical companies, the investigation expects to enroll 750 patients in seven countries across Europe.

The research project will be conducted at 20 clinical study centers in Europe, including:

• University Eye Clinic Bonn and the GRADE Reading Center Bonn
• Moorfields Eye Hospital
• University College
• City University
• Fondation voir et entendre Paris
• Coimbra Association for Innovation and Biomedical Research on Light and Image (AIBILI)
• Radound University Medical Center
• University of Sheffield
• European Clinical Research Infrastructures Network (ECRIN) Paris

AMD Ryan Initiative Study (ARIS):
Led by the National Eye Institute

This clinical study will follow 500 people over five years to learn more about the natural history of early age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Researchers will use the latest technologies, including AdaptDx, to measure function and visualize structures within the eye. The hope is to identify biomarkers of disease progression well before it advances to late-stage disease and causes vision loss.

All ARIS participants will undergo routine spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT); and visual function will be measured by dark-adapted fundus perimetry and dark adaption. Dark adaptation studies are relevant because AMD tends to first damage rod photoreceptors (the retinal cells that allow for vision under dim conditions) earlier than it does cone photoreceptors, which enable daylight vision. Researchers at each of the 20 ARIS study sites will track drusen volume changes as well as other findings on SD-OCT to see if they correspond to functional changes in visual acuity and dark adaptation.