Development and Implementation of the AIDA International Registry for Patients with Non-Infectious Uveitis

Ophthalmol Ther. 2022 Apr;11(2):899-911. doi: 10.1007/s40123-022-00459-1. Epub 2022 Jan 31.

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this paper is to point out the design, development and deployment of the AutoInflammatory Disease Alliance (AIDA) International Registry for paediatric and adult patients with non-infectious uveitis (NIU).

Methods: This is a physician-driven, population- and electronic-based registry implemented for both retrospective and prospective collection of real-world demographics, clinical, laboratory, instrumental and socioeconomic data of patients with uveitis and other non-infectious inflammatory ocular diseases recruited through the AIDA Network. Data recruitment, based on the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) tool, is thought to collect standardised information for real-life research and has been developed to change over time according to future scientific acquisitions and potentially communicate with other similar instruments. Security, data quality and data governance are cornerstones of this platform.

Results: Ninety-five centres have been involved from 19 countries and four continents from 24 March to 16 November 2021. Forty-eight out of 95 have already obtained the approval from their local ethics committees. At present, the platform counts 259 users (95 principal investigators, 160 site investigators, 2 lead investigators, and 2 data managers). The AIDA Registry collects baseline and follow-up data using 3943 fields organised into 13 instruments, including patient's demographics, history, symptoms, trigger/risk factors, therapies and healthcare utilization for patients with NIU.

Conclusions: The development of the AIDA Registry for patients with NIU will facilitate the collection of standardised data leading to real-world evidence and enabling international multicentre collaborative research through inclusion of patients and their families worldwide.

Keywords: Autoinflammatory diseases; Clinical management; Innovative biotechnologies; International registry; Personalised medicine; Precision medicine; Rare diseases; Uveitis.