Normal fundus 2 Flashcards
are myelinated nerve fibres (feature of the optic disc) physiological or pathological
physiological, but not present on most people
it i non-progressive and benign
when are nerve fibres usually myelinated until
not myelinated until the lamina cribrosa
where can nerve fibres sometimes retina their myelin sheaths
on the disc or the retina
why are retinal ganglion axons usually unmyelinated as they cross the retina
because even though myelin sheaths speed up nerve transmission, if the RGC axons were myelinated across the retina, we won’t be able to see anything as they’re opaque, so it will block the light hitting the retina
what symptoms will a person have if they have myelin sheaths on their retina
visual field defect corresponding to there the myelin sheaths are on the retina
what is the appearance of the nerve fibres as a result of myelin sheaths on the retina
normally transparent nerve fibres now appear a brilliant white against the fundus background
describe the two layers of capillaries that are over most of the fundus
- a superficial network in the nerve fibre layer close to the vitreous
- a deep network at the junction on the inner nuclear & outer plexiform layers
where in the retina are no capillaries found
central macula
what are the outer layers of the retina e.g. photoreceptors supplied by
the underlying choroidal circulation which is not directly visible with the direct ophthalmoscope
what circulation is seen when doing ophthalmoscopy and what does it consist of
the inner retinal circulation only, consisting of central retinal arteries & veins which branch out to supply the inner retinal layers & those two capillary networks are found in the retina
what is the appearance of a normal blood vessel wall and what is visible when seen with the direct ophthalmoscope
normal walls of bv’s are transparent and only the blood column of the vessels is seen
what is a notable feature of arterioles seen as a reflex in the ophthalmoscope light
linear light reflex which is a light following the arterioles
what 2 things is the linear light reflex seen in the arterioles formed by
- reflection from convex, cylindrical blood column
- reflection from convex vessel wall
- both surfaces act as convex mirrors
linear light reflex is more obvious in arteries than veins
what is the purpose of the retinal vessels
to supply oxygen and other nutrients from the blood to the 6 inner layers of the retina & take away waste materials
what does the health of the retinal vessels reflect upon
the health of the circulation throughout the body
what does examination of the retinal blood vessels assist in
detection and monitoring of systemic diseases e.g. hypertension, arteriosclerosis, diabetes
what do arterioles not cross
other arterioles
what do venules not cross
other venules
what is the normal positions of the arterioles and venules in the retina
usually
arterioles remain at normal level in the nerve fibre layer and venule dips to avoid the arteriole, called a/v crossing (artery crossing over vein)
what is the normal appearance of the route of the arterioles and venules at the a/v and v/a crossings in the retina
retinal vessels normally curve very gently with no deflections at the a/v and v/a crossings = carry on in their normal directions & don’t look like they’re being squashed
what 2 things does hypersensitive retinopathy cause to the retinal blood vessels
- a/v nipping
- tortuosity (BV’s become wiggly)
how does a/v nipping occur
a/v crossing changes are caused, where the underlying venule is compressed by the sclerosed/hardened artery as it crosses over and causes pressure on the vein which gets pinched by the artery
what can a further hardening of the arteriole in the retina cause to the course of the venule
may cause deflection of the venule which means it changes directions in right angle
what is a normal cause of tortuous arterioles
congenital which should then be uniform across the fundus
what does isolated regions of arteriolar tortuosity suggest
sclerosis of arteriole due to high blood pressure
what do pathological changes to the arterioles cause to their appearance
causes arteriole narrowing
what do pathological changes to the venules cause to their appearance
an increase in width
what does pathological changes in vessel calibre (thickness) cause to the a/v ratio
it gets altered to e.g. 1/4 or 1/5
what is a normal a/v ratio considered to be
2/3
how are you supposed to check the a/v ratio in order to detect change in vessel calibre
- chose vessels of comparable order of branching i.e. vessels that branch by the same amount
e. g. if artery we’re looking at has branched twice since the optic disc, then compare that with a vein thats branched twice since the optic disc
what naturally happens to the vessel calibre of all the vessels the further away they get from the disc
get narrower the further away from the optic disc
what two things must you look for when detecting abnormal changes e.g. from hypertension in vessel calibre (thickness)
- focal narrowing
- generalised narrowing to arterioles (severe narrowing in the case of hypertension)
when is mild generalised narrowing of the arteriole normal
found in a healthy elderly fundus
what does focal narrowing of the vessels look like
a patch of narrowing of changes of vessel thickness as you go along
what is leakage of a vessel a sign of
pathology
what 3 things are shown in a fundus when a blood vessel leaks
- hard exudates (lipids)
- haemorrhages (blood)
- oedema (fluid e.g. plasma or serum)
what is oedema fluid e.g. plasma or serum viewed in a OCT scan as
dark patches within the reflective layers