Ophthalmology Flashcards
What are the 3 layers of the eyeball?
- Fibrous
- Vascular
- Inner
What does the inner layer of the eyeball include?
The retina
What are the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye?
- 2 fluid filled chambers in the eye
- They are filled with clear aqueous humour that protects the eye
- This is drained via the trabecular meshwork
- Obstruction of this drainage results in glaucoma
What is the main fluid part of the eyeball?
Vitreous body
What is the name and function of CN II
- Optic
- Sight
What is the name and function of CN III?
- Oculomotor
- Innervation of IO, MR, SR, IR muscles
- Elevation of the eyelid
- Miosis and accommodation
What is the name and function of CN IV?
- Trochlear
- Innervation of SO muscle
What is the name and function of CN VI?
- Abducens
- Innervation of LR muscle
What is the name and function of CN VII?
- Facial
- Closure of eyelids
- Lacrimation
What vessels provides arterial blood supply to the eyeball? What is a key branch and why?
- Ophthalmic artery
- Central artery of the retina
- Occlusion of this can quickly result in blindness
What vessels carry out venous drainage of the eyeball?
Superior and inferior ophthalmic veins
What neurotransmitter and division of the autonomic nervous system cause pupil constriction?
- Parasympathetic
- Acetylcholine
What neurotransmitter and division of the autonomic nervous system cause pupil dilation?
- Sympathetic
- Adrenaline
What is considered normal vision? What do the numbers mean? What would indicate better and worse vision?
- 6/6 (in america this = 20/20)
- It means the patient can read something at 6 metres that the average person can read at 6 metres
- 6/9 (worse vision) - the patient can read something at 6 metres that the average person can read at 9
- 6/4 (better vision) - the patient can read something at 6 metres that the average person can read at 4
What is diabetic retinopathy
Where blood vessels in the retina are damaged by hyperglycaemia
What is seen in diabetic retinopathy when visualising the retina?
- Microaneurysms
- Venous beading
- Neovascularisation
- Blot haemorrhages
- Hard exudates (lipid deposits in the retina)
- Cotton wool spots (sign of nerve fibre damage)
Complications of diabetic retinopathy
- Retinal detachment
- Vitreous haemorrhage
- Optic neuropathy
- Cataracts
What is glaucoma?
Optic nerve damage caused by raised intraocular pressure
What are the 2 types of glaucoma?
- Open angle glaucoma
- Acute angle closure glaucoma
Which of the types of glaucoma is an ophthalmic emergency?
Acute angle closure glaucoma
What happens in open angle glaucoma?
- There is an increase in resistance in the trabecular meshwork
- This makes is more difficult for aqueous humour to flow through the meshwork and exit the eye
- The pressure fluids slowly and results in slow onset glaucoma
What are features of open angle glaucoma?
- Asymptomatic for a long time
- Reduced peripheral vision
- Tunnel vision
- Gradual onset of fluctuating pain, headaches, blurred vision, halos around lights
What is the first line management of open angle glaucoma?
- Prostaglandin analogue eye drops (e.g. latanoprost)
- Increase uveoscleral outflow
What happens in acute angle closure glaucoma?
- The iris bulges forward and seals off the trabecular meshwork
- This prevents aqueous humour from being able to drain away
- This leads to a continual build-up of pressure.
How would a patient with acute angle closure glaucoma present?
- Severely painful red eye
- Blurred vision
- Halos around lights
- Headache, nausea and vomiting
What features are typical of acute angle closure glaucoma on examination?
- Red-eye
- Teary
- Hazy cornea
- Decreased visual acuity
- Dilatation of the affected pupil
- Fixed pupil size
- Firm eyeball on palpation
What is the initial management of acute angle closure glaucoma?
- Lie the patient flat
- Pilocarpine eye drops
- Acetazolamide 500 mg orally
- Give analgesia and an antiemetic if required
What is the MOA of pilocarpine and acetazolamide in acute angle closure glaucoma?
- Pilocarpine causes pupil constriction increasing the flow of aqueous humour
- Acetazolamide is a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, it decreases the production of aqueous humour
What is the definitive treatment of acute angle closure glaucoma?
Laser iridotomy - using a laser to make a hole in the iris to allow the aqueous humour to flow from the posterior chamber into the anterior chamber, this relieves pressure that was pushing the iris against the cornea and allows the humour the drain
Give 5 causes of Mydriasis
- Third nerve palsy
- Raised ICP
- Trauma
- Stimulants e.g. cocaine
- Anticholinergics
Give 5 causes of Miosis
- Horners syndrome
- Cluster headaches
- Argyll-Robertson pupil (in neurosyphilis)
- Opiates
- Nicotine
How does a third nerve palsy present?
- Down and out gaze
- Ptosis
- Dilated non-reactive pupil
Why does a third nerve palsy cause a dilated pupil?
The oculomotor nerve contains parasympathetic nerve fibres that normally stimulate pupil constriction
What can cause a third nerve palsy?
- Trauma
- Tumour
- Posterior communicating artery aneurysm
- Cavernous sinus thrombosis
- Raised ICP
What is the biggest risk factor for retinal detachment?
Retinal tear
What increases someones risk of a retinal tear?
- Older age
- Diabetic retinopathy
- Severe myopia (short sightedness)
How does retinal detachment present?
3 Fs:
- Flashes
- Floaters
- Field changes
How can you group the causes of sudden loss of vision?
- Vascular
- Central retinal artery occlusion
- Retinal vein occlusion - Inflammatory
- Optic neuritis
What are 2 common causes of central retinal artery occlusion?
- Atherosclerosis
- Giant cell arteritis
How does central retinal artery occlusion present?
Sudden painless loss of vision
What do you need to check for when investigating central retinal artery occlusion?
- An RAPD
- Pale retina on funducopy
- ‘Cherry red’ spot at the macular on fundoscopy
What is the long term managment of central retinal artery occlusion?
As the most common risk factor is atherosclerosis, long term management includes treating reversible risk factors (smoking, obesity, hypertension) and secondary prevention of CVD
How does retinal vein occlusion present?
Sudden painless loss of vision
What would you see on fundoscopy in retinal vein occlusion?
- Flame and blot haemorrhages
- Optic disc oedema
Why are the similarities between the management of retinal vein occlusion and diabetic retinopathy?
Like in diabetic retinopathy, vein occlusion results in retinal damage. This results in the release of VEGF which stimulates the development of new blood vessels (neovascularisation). Like in diabetic retinopathy, these new vessels are weak and prone to bleeding. Treatments such as anti-VEGF injections aim to reduce these complications
Causes of painful red eye?
- Acute angle closure glaucoma
- Scleritis
- Anterior uveitis (iritis)
- Keratitis (corneal inflammation)
- Corneal abrasion
- Conjunctivitis
What is anterior uveitis?
- Inflammation of the anterior chamber of the eye (iris and ciliary body)
- Also called iritis