Retina: Anatomy and Physiology

RETINA:
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

It is the innermost tunica of the
eyeball:
Thin, delicate, transperant and

highly developed.
Extends from the optic disc to the orra
serrata.
Can be divided into three distinct
regions:
1]optic disc
2]macula lutea
3]peripheral retina
Development:
EMBRYOLOGY OF RETINA
Embryologically the retina is part of the
brain. It develops as a hollow out pushing
of the neural tube, whose outer end
becomes indented to form a stalked cup;
the double-walled cup forms the two layers
of the retina.
• Retina appears
purplish red due to:
1)visual purple color

of the pigment
epithelium. Orra serrata:it is the
2)vascular choroid. serrated peripheral
margin where retina
ends and the cilliary
body starts.
 Optic disc:
 Pale pink well defined circular area of about

1.5mm diameter.
 At optic disc, all the retinal layers terminate
except the nerve fibres, which pass through

the lamina cribrosa[sieve like sclera] to run
into the optic disc.
 Optic disc is white because:
 lamina cribrosa
 medullated white nerve fibers behind
 absence of vascular choroid.
 Physiological cup: depression seen in the disc.The central

retinal vessels emerge through the centre of the cup.
 Importance of the cup: increase in the size of the cup is
suspicious for glaucoma.
 In the centre of the disc :Nerve fibers are thinnest,so it

shines.
 A dark area of 5.5 mm diameter, situated 2 disc
diameter temporal from the edge of the optic disc.
 Function:photopic and color vision.
 Fovea centralis: central depressed part of macula,

of 1.85mm diameter and 0.25 mm thickness.
 Most sensitive part of retina, rich in cones.
 The central floor (of .35mm diameter) of fovea is
called foveola.
 Umbo:Tiny depression in the centre of
foveola,responsible for foveolar reflex in
ophthalmoscopical examination. Loss of the reflex is
an early sign of retinal damage.
 1]retinal pigment epithelium
 2]layers of rod and cones
 3]external limiting membrane
 4]outer nuclear layer
 5]outer plexiform layer
 6]inner nuclear layer
 7]inner plexiform layer
 8]ganglion cell layer
 9]nerve fibre layer
 10]internal limiting membrane.
These are the photoreceptors, serve as sensory
nerve endings for visual sensations.
Light falling upon the retina is absorbed by the
photosensitive pigments present in the rods and
cones.
Rods :contains rhodopsin. responsible for
peripheral vision and vision in low
illumination.
Cones: responsible for
central vision and colour vision.
Structure of rods and cones
• Highest density of cones: at
fovea,avg.199000 cones/mm sq.
• Rods are maximum below optic disc,

number reduces towards periphery,
and absent in fovea in an area of 0.35
mm around it.
How can we see?
• Light on retinaabsorbed by
the photosensitive pigments
present in rods and
conesinitiation of
photochemical
changestriggering of
sequential eventsvisual
perceptions.
The electrical changes produced and actively
processed in retina are transmitted through the
ganglion cells and along the fibers of the optic
nerve via the visual pathway up to the visual
cortex.
The mechanism is divided as:
1]initiation of vision(transduction)
2]transmission of visual sensations
3]visual perceptions.
Visual perceptions:
1.light sense
2.form sense
3.contrast sense
4.colour sense
Light sense:
• It is appreciation of light.
• Light minimum: minimum light required to evoke a

sensation.
• Dark adaptation: the ability of the eye to adapt itself to
decreasing illumination.
• Rods are more sensitive to low illumination than cones.
• Duplicity theory of vision:
rods are used more in dim light(scotopic vision)
cones are more used in bright light(photopic vision)
Form sense: Ability to discriminate between
the shapes of the objects.
Cones play a major role.
Form sense is more acute in fovea.

Visual acuity recorded by Snellen’s test is a
measure of form sense.
Colour sense: it is also function of cones.

 Outer 4 layers :
 Macula: small twigs from
 From the choriocapillaris superior and inferior
branches of central retinal
 Inner 6 layers:

artery. Sometimes, by a
From the central retinal cilioretinal artery, when
artery. presents.
 Fovea is an avascular area,
mainly supplied by
 Outer plexiform layer choriocapillaris.
gets its blood supply from  Retinal arteries are end
both. arteries.however,anastomo
sis occurs with cilliary
vessels near lamina
cribrosa.
 The RPE is firmly attached
to the underlying Bruchs’s
membrane[basal lamina of
choroid.]and loosely
attached to the layer of
rods and cones. There is a Types—
potential space between
the sensory retina and 1) Rhegmatogenous
pigment epithelium layer.
This layer is called sub 2) Exudative, serous, or
retinal space. The two secondary
layers can be readily
separated and such an 3) Tractional
event is called retinal
detachment.
• Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment – occurs due to a
break in the retina that allows fluid to pass from the vitreous
space into the subretinal space . Retinal breaks are divided
into three types - holes, tears and dialyses.
• Exudative, serous, or secondary retinal detachment-
occurs due to inflammation, injury or vascular abnormalities
that results in fluid accumulating underneath the retina
without the presence of a hole, tear, or break..
• Tractional retinal detachment – A tractional retinal
detachment occurs when fibrous or fibrovascular tissue,
caused by an injury, inflammation or neovascularization,
pulls the sensory retina from the retinal pigment epithelium.

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RETINA:

ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

Thin, delicate, transperant and

1)visual purple color

 Pale pink well defined circular area of about

 At optic disc, all the retinal layers terminate

except the nerve fibres, which pass through

 Physiological cup: depression seen in the disc.The central

 In the centre of the disc :Nerve fibers are thinnest,so it

 Fovea centralis: central depressed part of macula,

• Rods are maximum below optic disc,

The mechanism is divided as:

• Light minimum: minimum light required to evoke a

Cones play a major role.

Form sense is more acute in fovea.

Colour sense: it is also function of cones.

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