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27-03-2024 | Optic Neuritis | Review article

Utility of ganglion cells for the evaluation of anterior visual pathway pathology: a review

Authors: Anne-Catherine Chapelle, Jean-Marie Rakic, Gordon Terence Plant

Abstract

The management of optic neuropathy is fundamental to neuro-ophthalmic practice. Following the invention of the ophthalmoscope, clinicians, for a century or more, relied upon fundus examination in the evaluation of optic neuropathy. However, the advent of optical coherence tomography, based on the principle of backscattering of light and interferometry, has revolutionized the analysis of optic nerve and retinal disorders. Optical coherence tomography has proven of particular value in the measurement, at the micron level, of the peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer and the ganglion cell layer. These measurements have proven critical in the differential diagnosis and monitoring of optic neuropathy. Specifically, thinning of the peripapillary nerve fibre layer provides evidence of axonal loss affecting any sector of the optic nerve. Thinning of the macular ganglion cell layer, on the other hand, shows a more precise correlation with visual deficits due to retrograde degeneration following optic nerve damage, although limited to central retina. In daily practise, optical coherence tomography is of great value in assessing the diagnosis, prognosis and response to treatment in optic neuropathy. Particular advances have been made, for example, in the assessment of optic neuritis, papilloedema and chiasmal compression which have translated to everyday practice. As with any other imaging technology the clinician must have a clear understanding of acquisition artefacts. A further issue is the relatively limited normative database in sub-populations such as the young and individuals with a refractive error > + 5 or < −5 dioptres.

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Title: Utility of ganglion cells for the evaluation of anterior visual pathway pathology: a review
Authors: Anne-Catherine Chapelle
Jean-Marie Rakic
Gordon Terence Plant
Publication date: 27-03-2024
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Keyword: Optic Neuritis
Published in: Acta Neurologica Belgica
Print ISSN: 0300-9009
Electronic ISSN: 2240-2993
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13760-024-02522-z

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Utility of ganglion cells for the evaluation of anterior visual pathway pathology: a review

Abstract

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Abstract

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