Northern Ireland practices participating in pioneering AI project

Northern Ireland optometry practices with a Maestro optical coherence tomography (OCT) device are invited to join a pioneering artificial intelligence (AI) project that aims to enhance the early detection of retinal disease.

The I-Screen initiative has a target of capturing 5000 OCT scans within optometry practices across Europe in order to validate and train a screening model for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and geographic atrophy (GA).

A statement from the European Council of Optometry and Optics (ECOO), which is an I-Screen project partner, highlighted that the project aims to make AI-supported OCT screening for AMD and GA more accessible, consistent, and clinically useful in primary-care settings.

ECOO secretary general, Fabienne Eckert, emphasised that optometrists are central to the success of the project.

“The involvement of optometrists in I-Screen not only advances the project’s objectives but also showcases their role as primary eye-care providers,” she highlighted.

“More than 600 of these images are to be sourced from practices in Northern Ireland, underscoring the country’s valuable contribution,” Eckert added.

To date, 22 optometry practices have been recruited across Switzerland, Austria, Spain, Slovenia and Northern Ireland.

Eckert noted that an additional clinical site in Dijon, France has its own set-up for sourcing images.

Northern Ireland practices that have signed up include I-Care, J McKeown Opticians, Harris Rundle, EK Eyecare, RA Glass and Faith Donaldson Optometrists.

Eckert confirmed that Northern Ireland was selected as a UK site by the Medical University of Vienna, which is collaborating with Professor Ruth Hogg of Queen’s University Belfast.

I-Screen is aiming to collect the 5000 images by mid-2026, with the project continuing until the end of 2027.

“As the project continues to build momentum, there is still room for additional involvement. If your practice is equipped with a Maestro OCT device, and is based in Northern Ireland, you may be eligible to participate in this landmark initiative,” Eckert said.

She added that all patient data is anonymised and handled with “the utmost care.”

More information about the initiative can be found on the project website, while optometrists who are interested in finding out more information can contact ECOO by email.