Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Encyclopedia of Ophthalmology pp 1268–1269Cite as

Optic Disc (Optic Nerve Head)

  • Reference work entry
  • First Online:

  • 70 Accesses

Synonyms

Optic nerve head

Definition

The optic disc is the most anterior (or distal) portion of the optic nerve and extends from the surface of the retina to the myelinated portion of the optic nerve, which begins just behind the sclera. It is composed of about 1.2 million nerve fibers (axons) that originate in the ganglion cell layer of the retina.

Basic Characteristics

The optic disc is located nasal to and slightly superior to the macula and is an aggregation of fibers of the retinal nerve fiber layer as they exit the intraocular space through the sclera to form the optic nerve. Retinal ganglion axons bend acutely as they enter the optic nerve and are divided into about 1000 fascicles. They then pass through one of a few hundred holes that perforate the lamina cribrosa, the collagenous fenestrated support of the optic disc. The blood supply of the optic disc is the central retinal artery anteriorly but shifts to branches of the ophthalmic artery posteriorly. The average size of the...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   1,199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD   1,599.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

Further Reading

  • Allingham R et al (2005) Shields’ textbook of glaucoma. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia

    Google Scholar 

  • Alward LM (2000) Glaucoma: the requisites in ophthalmology. Mosby, St. Louis

    Google Scholar 

  • Gold D, Lewis R (2002) Clinical eye atlas. AMA Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Harizman N et al (2006) The ISNT rule and differentiation of normal from glaucomatous eyes. Arch Ophthalmol 124(11):1579–1583

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yanoff M, Dueker J (2004) Ophthalmology. Mosby, St. Louis

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ophthalmology, Emory University, 1365 Clifton Road, 30322, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Annette Giangiacomo

Authors
  1. Annette Giangiacomo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Annette Giangiacomo .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth

  2. Department of Ophthalmology, Goethe University of Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Thomas Kohnen

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Giangiacomo, A. (2018). Optic Disc (Optic Nerve Head). In: Schmidt-Erfurth, U., Kohnen, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Ophthalmology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69000-9_112

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69000-9_112

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-68292-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-69000-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation