Central retinal vein occlusion, also CRVO, is when the

central retinal vein The central retinal vein (retinal vein) is a vein that drains the retina of the eye. It travels backwards through the centre of the optic nerve accompanied by the central retinal artery before exiting the optic nerve together with the central re ...

becomes occluded, usually through

thrombosis Thrombosis (from Ancient Greek "clotting") is the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. When a blood vessel (a vein or an artery) is injured, the body uses platelets (thro ...

. The central retinal vein is the venous equivalent of the

central retinal artery The central retinal artery (retinal artery) branches off the ophthalmic artery, running inferior to the optic nerve within its dural sheath to the eyeball. Structure The central retinal artery pierces the eyeball close to the optic nerve, sendin ...

and both may become occluded. Since the central retinal artery and vein are the sole source of blood supply and drainage for the

retina The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which then ...

, such occlusion can lead to severe damage to the retina and blindness, due to

ischemia Ischemia or ischaemia is a restriction in blood supply to any tissue, muscle group, or organ of the body, causing a shortage of oxygen that is needed for cellular metabolism (to keep tissue alive). Ischemia is generally caused by problems wi ...

(restriction in blood supply) and

edema Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's Tissue (biology), tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels t ...

(swelling). CRVO can cause

ocular ischemic syndrome Ocular ischemic syndrome is the constellation of ocular signs and symptoms secondary to severe, chronic arterial hypoperfusion to the eye. Amaurosis fugax is a form of acute vision loss caused by reduced blood flow to the eye; it may be a warn ...

. Nonischemic CRVO is the milder form of the disease. It may progress to the more severe ischemic type. CRVO can also cause

glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...

Diagnosis

Despite the role of thrombosis in the development of CRVO, a systematic review found no increased prevalence of

thrombophilia Thrombophilia (sometimes called hypercoagulability or a prothrombotic state) is an abnormality of blood coagulation that increases the risk of thrombosis (blood clots in blood vessels). Such abnormalities can be identified in 50% of people who ...

(an inherent propensity to thrombosis) in patients with retinal vascular occlusion.

Treatment

Treatment consists of Anti-VEGF drugs like

Lucentis Ranibizumab, sold under the brand name Lucentis among others, is a monoclonal antibody fragment ( Fab) created from the same parent mouse antibody as bevacizumab. It is an anti-angiogenic that is approved to treat the "wet" type of age-related ...

or intravitreal steroid implant (Ozurdex) and Pan-Retinal Laser Photocoagulation usually. Underlying conditions also require treatment. CRVO without

has better visual prognosis than ischemic CRVO. A systematic review studied the effectiveness of the anti-VEGF drugs

ranibizumab Ranibizumab, sold under the brand name Lucentis among others, is a monoclonal antibody fragment ( Fab) created from the same parent mouse antibody as bevacizumab. It is an anti-angiogenic that is approved to treat the "wet" type of age-related m ...

and pagatanib sodium for patients with non-ischemic CRVO. Though there was a limited sample size, participants in both treatment groups showed improved visual acuity over 6 month periods, with no safety concerns.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Central Retinal Vein Occlusion Disorders of choroid and retina

Diagnosis

Treatment

See also

References

External links