{{Short description|Optic nerve head, the point of exit for ganglion cell axons leaving the eye}} {{about|the anatomical feature of the eye|digital storage media such as CDs and DVDs|optical disc}} {{Hatnote|Not to be confused with the fovea centralis, a nearby structure that also carries signals to the optic nerve.}} {{Infobox anatomy | Name = Optic disc | Synonyms = Optic disk, optic disc, optic nerve head, blind spot, Mariotte blind spot, Mariotte's blind spot, optic papilla, discus nervi optici [TA], papilla nervi optici, porus opticus) | Latin = discus nervi optici | Image = File:Retinography.jpg | Caption = Ophthalmoscopy photograph showing the optic disc as a bright area on the right where blood vessels converge. | Image2 = Gray880.png | Caption2 = The terminal portion of the optic nerve and its entrance into the eyeball, in horizontal section. | System = }}
The '''optic disc''' or '''optic nerve head''' is the point of exit for ganglion cell axons leaving the eye. Because there are no rods or cones overlying the optic disc, it corresponds to a small blind spot in each eye.
The ganglion cell axons form the optic nerve after they leave the eye. The optic disc represents the beginning of the optic nerve and is the point where the axons of retinal ganglion cells come together. The optic disc in a normal human eye carries 1–1.2 million afferent nerve fibers from the eye toward the brain. The optic disc is also the entry point for the major arteries that supply the retina with blood, and the exit point for the veins from the retina.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=blind spot |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/blind-spot |year=2011 |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=June 21, 2017}}</ref>
==Structure== The optic disc is located 3 to 4 mm to the nasal side of the fovea. It is a vertical oval, with average dimensions of 1.76mm horizontally by 1.92mm vertically.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Tasman |first1=William |last2=Jaeger |first2=Edward A |title=Duane's Ophthalmology |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 4: Anatomy of the Visual Sensory System |location=Philadelphia |publisher=Lippincott Williams & Wilkins |isbn=978-0-7817-6855-9 |oclc=318288606}}</ref> There is a central depression, of variable size, called the optic cup. This depression can be a variety of shapes from a shallow indentation to a '''bean pot'''—this shape can be significant for diagnosis of some retinal diseases.
== Function == The optic disc or optic nerve head is the point of exit for ganglion cell axons leaving the eye. Because there are no rods or cones overlying the optic disc, it corresponds to a small blind spot in each eye.
==Clinical significance== Almost all eye structures can be examined with appropriate optical equipment and lenses. Using a modern direct ophthalmoscope gives a view of the optic disc using the principle of reversibility of light. A slit lamp biomicroscopic examination along with an appropriate aspheric focusing lens (+66D, +78D or +90D) is required for a detailed stereoscopic view of the optic disc and structures inside the eye.
A biomicroscopic exam can indicate the health of the optic nerve. In particular, the eye care physician notes the colour, cupping size (as a cup-to-disc ratio), sharpness of edge, swelling, hemorrhages, notching in the optic disc and any other unusual anomalies. It is useful for finding evidence corroborating the diagnosis of glaucoma and other optic neuropathies, optic neuritis, anterior ischemic optic neuropathy or papilledema (i.e. optic disc swelling produced by raised intracranial pressure), and optic disc drusen.
Women in an advanced stage of pregnancy with pre-eclampsia should be screened by an ophthalmoscopic examination of the optic disc for early evidence of a rise in intracranial pressure.
===Pale disc=== [[File:Schematic diagram of the human eye en.svg|thumb|260px|Schematic diagram of the human eye, with the optic disc, or blind spot, at the lower left. Shown is a horizontal cross section of the right eye, viewed from above.]] A normal optic disc is orange to pink in colour and may vary based on ethnicity.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Heidary|first1=Fatemeh|last2=Gharebaghi|first2=Reza|last3=Wan Hitam|first3=Wan Hazabbah|last4=Shatriah|first4=Ismail|date=2010|title=Nerve fiber layer thickness|url=https://www.aaojournal.org/article/S0161-6420(10)00598-1/fulltext|journal=Ophthalmology|volume=117|issue=9|pages=1861–1862|doi=10.1016/j.ophtha.2010.05.024|issn=1549-4713|pmid=20816254|s2cid=11122001 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> A '''pale disc''' is an optic disc which varies in colour from a pale pink or orange colour to white. A pale disc is an indication of a disease condition.{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}
===Imaging=== thumb|Optic disc cross-sections imaged by an SD-OCT. Traditional colour-film camera images are the reference standard in imaging, requiring an expert ophthalmic photographer, ophthalmic technician, optometrist or ophthalmologist for taking standardised pictures of the optic disc. Stereoscopic images offer an excellent investigative tool for serial follow-up of suspected changes in the hands of an expert optometrist or ophthalmologist.
Automated techniques have also been developed to allow for more efficient and less expensive imaging. Heidelberg retinal tomography (HRT), scanning laser polarimetry and optical coherence tomography are computerised techniques for imaging various structures of the eyes, including the optic disc. They quantify the nerve fiber layer of the disc and surrounding retina and statistically correlate the findings with a database of previously screened population of normals. They are useful for baseline and serial follow-up to monitor minute changes in optic disc morphology. Imaging will not provide conclusive evidence for clinical diagnosis however, and the evidence needs to be supplanted by serial physiological testing for functional changes. Such tests may include visual field charting and final clinical interpretation of the complete eye examination by an eye care physician. Ophthalmologists and optometrists are able to provide this service.
Blood flow in the retina and choroid in the optic disc region can be revealed non invasively by near-infrared laser Doppler imaging.<ref name="PuyoLDH">Puyo, L., M. Paques, M. Fink, J-A. Sahel, and M. Atlan. "In vivo laser Doppler holography of the human retina." Biomedical optics express 9, no. 9 (2018): 4113-4129.</ref> Laser Doppler imaging can enable mapping of the local arterial resistivity index, and the possibility to perform unambiguous identification of retinal arteries and veins on the basis of their systole-diastole variations, and reveal ocular hemodynamics in human eyes.<ref>Puyo, Léo, Michel Paques, Mathias Fink, José-Alain Sahel, and Michael Atlan. "Waveform analysis of human retinal and choroidal blood flow with laser Doppler holography." Biomedical Optics Express 10, no. 10 (2019): 4942-4963.</ref> Furthermore, the Doppler spectrum asymmetry reveals the local direction of blood flow with respect to the optical axis. This directional information is overlaid on standard grayscale blood flow images to depict flow in the central artery and vein.<ref name="PuyoAsymm">Puyo, L., M. Paques, and M. Atlan. "Retinal blood flow reversal in out-of-plane vessels imaged with laser Doppler holography" https://arxiv.org/abs/2008.09813</ref>
A systematic review of 106 studies and 16,260 eyes compared the performance of the imaging techniques, and found that all three imaging tests performed very similarly when detecting for glaucoma.<ref name="Michelessi">{{cite journal |vauthors=Michelessi M, Lucenteforte E, Oddone F, Brazzelli M, Parravano M, Franchi S, Ng SM, Virgili G |title= Optic nerve head and fibre layer imaging for diagnosing glaucoma |journal=Cochrane Database Syst Rev |issue=11 |article-number= CD008803 |date=2015 |volume= 2020 |pmid= 26618332 |doi= 10.1002/14651858.CD008803.pub2|pmc=4732281 }}</ref> The review found that in 1,000 patients subjected to imaging tests, with 200 having manifest glaucoma, the best imaging tests would miss 60 cases out of the 200 patients with glaucoma, and incorrectly refer 50 out of 800 patients without glaucoma.<ref name="Michelessi" />
==Abnormalities== *Megalopapilla: a non-progressive condition in which the optic disc is enlarged (diameter exceeding 2.1 mm) with no other morphological abnormalities.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Amador-Patarroyo |first1=Manuel J. |last2=Pérez-Rueda |first2=Mario A. |last3=Tellez |first3=Carlos H. |title=Congenital anomalies of the optic nerve |journal=Saudi Journal of Ophthalmology |date=1 January 2015 |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=32–38 |doi=10.1016/j.sjopt.2014.09.011 |pmid=25859137 |pmc=4314572 |language=en |issn=1319-4534}}</ref> *Morning glory disc anomaly: a unilateral congenital deformity resulting from failure of the optic nerve to completely form in utero.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Magrath|first=GN|author2=Cheeseman EW |author3=Sarrica RA |title=Morning Glory Disc Anomaly|journal=Pediatric Neurology|year=2013|volume=49|issue=6|page=517|doi=10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2013.05.015|pmid=24095648 }}</ref><ref name=Barnard>{{cite web|last=Barnard|first=Simon|title=An Introduction to Diseases of the Optic nerve|url=http://www.academy.org.uk/lectures/barnard3.htm|access-date=30 May 2014|archive-date=19 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619030028/http://www.academy.org.uk/lectures/barnard3.htm}}</ref> The term was coined in 1970 by Kindler, noting a resemblance of the malformed optic nerve to the morning glory flower.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Kindler|title=Morning glory syndrome: unusual congenital optic disk anomaly|journal=Am J Ophthalmol|year=1970|volume=69|issue=3|pages=376–84|doi=10.1016/0002-9394(70)92269-5|pmid=5418855 }}</ref> *Optic disc coloboma: a congenital deformity resulting from improper closure of the choroid fissure,<ref name="Parsa_2021">{{Cite book |last1=Parsa |first1=Cameron F. |last2=Cheeseman |first2=Edward W. |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/rwe/10.1007/978-3-319-90495-5_283-1 |url=https://link.springer.com/referencework/10.1007/978-3-319-90495-5 |title=Albert and Jakobiec's Principles and Practice of Ophthalmology |date=2021-08-27 |publisher=Springer, Cham |isbn=978-3-319-90495-5 |editor-last1=Albert |editor-first1=Daniel |pages=1–34 |language=en |chapter=Congenital Optic Nerve Anomalies |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-90495-5_283-1 |access-date=2026-02-19 |editor-last2=Miller |editor-first2=Joan |editor-last3=Azar |editor-first3=Dimitri |editor-last4=Young |editor-first4=Lucy H.}}</ref> usually bilateral.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Strominger |first=Mitchell B. |date=October 14, 2015 |title=Morning Glory Syndrome |at=sec. Differential diagnosis |url=https://www.aao.org/education/disease-review/neuro-ophthalmology-morning-glory-syndrome |access-date=2026-02-19 |website=ONE Network: The Ophthalmic News and Education Network |publisher=American Academy of Ophthalmology |language=en}}</ref> *Optic pit: congenital excavation of the optic disc resulting from a malformation during development of the eye.<ref name="Graefe">{{Cite journal|last1=Georgalas|first1=Ilias|last2=Ladas|first2=Ioannis|last3=Georgopoulos|first3=Gerasimos|last4=Petrou|first4=Petros|date=August 2011|title=Optic disc pit: a review|journal=Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology = Albrecht von Graefes Archiv für Klinische und Experimentelle Ophthalmologie|volume=249|issue=8|pages=1113–1122|doi=10.1007/s00417-011-1698-5|issn=1435-702X|pmid=21638030|s2cid=25880534 }}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery widths="200px" heights="200px"> File:LDH_ONH_ED.gif|Blood flow in the optic disc revealed by holographic laser Doppler imaging.<ref name="PuyoLDH"/> File:LaserDopplerHolographyRetinaSpectralAsymmetry.gif|Local direction of blood flow with respect to the optical axis revealed by the Doppler spectrum asymmetry in out-of-plane retinal vessels by holographic laser Doppler imaging.<ref name="PuyoAsymm"/> File:Optic_cup_and_macula_-_3D_motion_parallax.gif|Three dimensional image of a healthy optic disc in a 24-year-old female. File:Optic disc detail.png|alt=High detail picture of optic disc.|Optic disc showing microvasculature. File:Tilted Disc Syndrome.jpg|Tilted optic disc in left eye of a 20-year-old male. File:Optic disc edema and haemorrhage.jpg|Optic disc edema and haemorrhage </gallery>
== Comparative anatomy == The optic disc has different shapes among vertebrates. It may be circular, oval, reniform, triangular, or linear.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Johnson |first=George Lindsay |author-link=George Lindsay Johnson |date=1901 |title=Contributions to the Comparative Anatomy of the Mammalian Eye, Chiefly Based on Ophthalmoscopic Examination |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Containing Papers of a Biological Character |volume=194 |pages=1–82 |jstor=91868 |issn=0264-3960}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Johnson |first=George Lindsay |author-link=George Lindsay Johnson |date=1927 |title=Contributions to the Comparative Anatomy of the Reptilian and the Amphibian Eye, Chiefly Based on Ophthalmological Examination |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Containing Papers of a Biological Character |volume=215 |pages=315–353 |jstor=92111 |issn=0264-3960}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Johnson |first=George Lindsay |author-link=George Lindsay Johnson |date=1968 |title=Ophthalmoscopic Studies on the Eyes of Mammals |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences |volume=254 |issue=794 |pages=207–220 |jstor=2416833 |issn=0080-4622}}</ref> The linear form is the case for the squirrels, most birds, and the predaceous pikes, salmonoids, and percoids among the teleost fishes.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Walls |first=Gordon Lynn |author-link=Gordon Lynn Walls |url=http://archive.org/details/vertebrateeyeits00wall |title=The vertebrate eye and its adaptive radiation |date=1942 |publisher=Bloomfield Hills, Mich., Cranbrook Institute of Science |edition=1}}</ref>{{Pg|page=179}}
Most squirrels have a very long and thin linear optic disc, placed horizontally and dorsally in the retina. This allows the squirrel to see the sky without blind spots. Generally, the brighter the environment that the squirrel is active in, the longer the optic disc. The flying squirrel ''Glaucomys volans'' is nocturnal, and has a circular optic disc at the center of the fundus.<ref name=":0" />{{Pg|page=180}}
==See also== * Optic disc pallor
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20060530024017/http://www.moorfields.org.uk/EyeHealth/Anatomyoftheeye?portal_skin=print& Diagram at Moorfields Eye Hospital] *[http://www.ballardoptical.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=eyecyclopedia.main&Criteria=Results&ID=160 Diagram at Ballard Optical]{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} *[http://iovs.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2168189& Retinal Vein Pulsation Is in Phase with Intracranial Pressure and Not Intraocular Pressure]
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Category:Human eye anatomy