Corpus: Central retinal artery
1. Definition
The central retinal artery is a branch of the ophthalmic artery that supplies the retina.
2. Anatomy
The central retinal artery is a small-caliber blood vessel with a diameter of about 160 µm.[1]
2.1. Course
The central retinal artery enters the optic nerve near the eyeball. It travels within the optic nerve to the optic disc (papilla nervi optici), from where it sends out numerous branches that act as terminal arteries to supply the nerve fibers of the retina. The outer layers of the retina (especially the photoreceptors) are supplied by the vascular system of the choroid. The fovea centralis and its immediate surroundings also receive their blood supply from the choroid.
2.2. Branches
The exact course of the branches of the central retinal artery varies greatly between individuals.
- Medial retinal arteriole
- Inferior nasal retinal arteriole
- Superior nasal retinal arteriole
- Inferior temporal retinal arteriole
- Superior temporal retinal arteriole
- Inferior macular arteriole
- Superior macular arteriole
Another prenatal branch of the central retinal artery, which regresses before birth, is the hyaloid artery.
2.3. Function
The central retinal artery supplies the neurons of the optic nerve, which transmit visual stimuli to the lateral geniculate nucleus.
3. Clinic
Complete occlusion (embolism) of the central retinal artery is known as central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO). It leads to complete vision loss.
4. Source
- ↑ Dorner, GT et al: "Calculation of the diameter of the central retinal artery from noninvasive measurements in humans". Current eye research, 25 (6): 341-5 (2002) PMID 12789540.