Opthalmology Flashcards
Open Angle Glaucoma
- Increased intraocular pressure due to decreased outflow of aqueous humor
- Can be blocked by WBCs (uveitis), RBCs ( vitreous hemorrhage) or retinal elements (retinal detachment).
- Leads to optic neuropathy and causes loss of ganglion cell axons
- Visualized on exam as pale optic disc and enlarged optic cup
- Leads to loss of peripheral vision
- Associated with increased age, african-american race, family history
- Usually painless
What is the preferred first line treatment for open angle glaucoma?
Latanoprost
- First line prostaglandin applied topically
- Converted to active form by esterases in the cornea
- Decreases collagen content in the uveoscleral outflow pathway and increase outflow of aqueous humor
- May cause increased pigmentation in eyelids
Which cells secrete aqueous humor?
- Non pigmented epithelial cells in the ciliary body.
- It enters the posterior chamber.
- It is decreased by beta blockers, alpha 2 agonists and carbonic anhydrase inhibitors
What is the Schlemms canal?
Scleral venous sinus that drains aqueous humor
What is conjunctivitis?
- Inflammation of the conjunctiva
- Produces a red eye
- Allergic: bilateral itchy eyes
- Bacterial: may secrete pus, treat with antibiotics
- Viral: Most common, caused by adenovirus, sparse mucus discharge, swollen preauricular node; self limited disease
What are the 4 refractory errors and how are they usually treated?
- Hyperopia
- Myopia
- Astigmatism
- Presbyopia
All are correctable with glasses
Hyperopia
- Farsightedness
- Eye is too short for refractive power of cornea and lens
- Light is focused behind the retina
- Correct with a convex (converging) lens
Myopia
- Nearsightedness
- Eye is too long for refractive power of cornea and lens
- Light is focused in front of the retina
- Correct with a concave (diverging) lens
Astigmatism
- Abnormal curvature of the cornea
- Different refractive power at different axes
- Correct with a cylindrical lens
Presbyopia
- Aging-related impaired accommodation (focusing on near objects)
- Primarily due to decreased lens elasticity, change in curvature or decreased strength of the ciliary muscle
- Patients often need reading glasses (magnifiers)
What are cataracts?
- Painless often bilateral, opacification of lens
- Often result in decreased vision
- Risk factors: Increased age, smoking, excessive alcohol use, excessive sunlight, prolonged corticosteroid use, diabetes mellitus, trauma, infection
- Congenital risk factors: classic galactosemia, galactokinase deficiency, trisomies (13,18,21), ToRCHeS (rubella), Marfan syndrome, Alport syndrome, myotonic dystrophy, neurofibromatosis 2
Where does 90% of the aqueous humor drain?
Trabecular outflow - Through the trabecular meshwork - Into the canal of schlemm - Into the episcleral vasculature This is increased with M3 agonists
Where does the other 10% of the aqueous humor drain?
Uveoscleral outflow
- Drain into the uvea and sclera
Increased with prostaglandin agonists
Iris
Consists of two muscles
- Dilator muscle is regulated by alpha 1 receptors, causes pupil to dilate,
- Phenylephrine targets dilator muscle
- Darkness dilates the pupil
- Sphincter muscle is regulated by M3 receptors, causes pupil to constrict
- Pilocarpine targets sphicter muscle
- Bright light constricts the pupils
What is closed angle glaucoma?
Primary
- Enlargement/forward movement of lens against the central iris (pupil)
- Leads to obstruction of the normal aqueous flow through the pupil
- Fluid builds up behind the iris
- Pushes the peripheral iris against the cornea
- Impedes flow through the trabecular meshwork
Secondary
- Hypoxia from retinal disease such as DM or vein occlusion
- Induces vasoproliferation in iris that contracts the angle
-Can be acute or chronic
Chronic angle closure glaucoma
Asymptomatic with damage to the optic nerve and to peripheral vision
Acute angle closure glaucoma
- True opthalmic emergency
- Increase in Intraocular pressure pushes the iris forward
- The angle closes abruptly
- Very painful, red eye, sudden vision loss, halos around lights, frontal headache, fixed and mid dilated pupil
- Do not give epinephrine due to mydriatic effect (dilation)
What is intraocular hypertension?
- Any situation in which intraocular pressure is greater than 21 mmHg
- Measured by applanation tonometry on two or more occasions
- Absence of glaucomatous defects on visual field testing
- Normal appearance of optic disc and nerve fiber layer
- Normal open angles on gonioscopy
- Absence of ocular conditions contributing to the elevation of pressure such as narrow angles, neovascular conditions and uveitis
What is diabetic retinopathy?
- Damage to the endothelial lining of the small blood vessels of the eye
- Leads to progressive occlusion on a microscopic level
- The occlusion leads to obstruction and increased pressure
What is non proliferative retinopathy?
- Background retinopathy
- Characterized by dilation of veins, micro aneurysms, retina edema and retinal hemorrhages (do not obstruct sight).
What is proliferative retinopathy?
- More advanced form of disease
- Progresses more rapidly to blindness
- Vessels secrete angiogenesis factor because they are not providing sufficient nutrition to the retina
- Neovascularization leads to optic nerve getting covered with abnormal new vessels
- Hemorrhages protrude into the vitreous chamber
- Vitreal hemorrhages are much more serious than micro aneurysms or intraretinal hemorrhages because they obstruct sight