Optic disc

Optic disc
Interior of posterior half of bulb of left eye. The veins are darker in appearance than the arteries.
The terminal portion of the optic nerve and its entrance into the eyeball, in horizontal section.
Details
Identifiers
Latin	Discus nervi optici
MeSH	A08.800.800.120.680.660
TA	A15.2.04.019
FMA	58634
Anatomical terminology []

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 physiological 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 is also the entry point for the major blood vessels that supply the retina. The optic disc in a normal human eye carries from 1-1.2 million neurons from the eye towards the brain.

The optic disc is placed 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. 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 pathologies.

The eye is unique because of the transparency of its optical media. 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 give an indication of 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.