Building a linked eye health data resource for AI research in the South West

Eye diseases such as cataract, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy are major causes of vision loss in the UK. Cataracts, AMD, and glaucoma mostly affect older adults, while diabetic eye disease is a leading cause of vision problems in working-age people.  

These conditions account for over 8 million hospital visits each year, making eye care the busiest outpatient specialty in the NHS. With an aging population and rising obesity rates (a key risk factor for diabetes), the demand for eye care continues to grow. 

Modern tools like artificial intelligence (AI) have the potential to improve how we detect and monitor these diseases from eye imaging, such as retinal scans. However, researchers currently face challenges in using NHS data for AI, mainly because there is no secure, joined-up system to link hospital eye imaging to the patient information held by GP records or community optician practices, for research.

Project aims

This project aims to create a secure and linked database that combines eye imaging and clinical information from Bristol Eye Hospital with wider NHS data, using the South West Secure Data Environment (SDE). The data will include vision test results and eye imaging scans from different sources, such as video slit-lamp exams in community eye clinics and advanced imaging techniques in the Eye Hospital. 

A team of researchers, data experts, and NHS staff will work together to understand what technical tools, systems and staff are needed to make this possible. 

What we hope to achieve

This new database will support research to improve the early diagnosis of eye diseases using AI tools. It could help spot conditions like cataracts and glaucoma earlier, or reveal signs of systemic diseases like diabetes through eye imaging. Long-term, this work could support screening in community optician practices or eye clinics, reduce hospital pressures, and improve access to early treatment, helping to protect the sight of thousands of people.