The Human Eye

The human eye :

1. Is an organ that reacts to light and allows vision

2. Rod and cone cells in the retina allow conscious light
perception and vision including color differentiation and
the perception of depth
3. The human eye can differentiate colors and is possibly
capable of detecting a single photon
4. The eye is part of the sensory nervous system
1. vitreous body
2. ora serrata
3. ciliary muscle
4. ciliary zonules
5. Schlemm's canal
6. pupil
7. anterior chamber
8. cornea
9. iris
10. lens cortex
11. lens nucleus
12. ciliary process
13. conjunctiva
14. inferior oblique muscle
15. inferior rectus muscle
16. medial rectus muscle
17. retinal arteries and veins
18. optic disc
19. dura mater
20. central retinal artery
21. central retinal vein
22. optic nerve
23. vorticose vein
24. bulbar sheath
25. macula
26. fovea
27. sclera
28. choroid
29. superior rectus muscle
30. retina
The eye it is a fused two-piece unit, composed of the
anterior segment and the posterior segment.

The anterior segment is made up of :

1. Cornea, is transparent and more curved
2. Iris
3. Lens

The posterior segment, composed of :

1. Vitreous
2. Retina
3. Choroid
4. Sclera
The eye is made up of three coats or layers, enclosing
various anatomical structures :

1. The outermost layer, known as the fibrous tunic, is

composed of the cornea and sclera.
2. The middle layer, known as the vascular tunic or uvea,
consists of the choroid, ciliary body, pigmented epithelium
and iris.
3. The innermost is the retina, which gets its oxygenation
from the blood vessels of the choroid (posteriorly) as well
as the retinal vessels (anteriorly).
• The aqueous humour is a clear watery fluid that is contained
in two areas: the anterior chamber between the cornea and
the iris, and the posterior chamber between the iris and the
lens
• The lens is suspended to the ciliary body by the suspensory
ligament (Zonule of Zinn)
• The vitreous body is a clear substance composed of water
and proteins, which give it a jelly-like and sticky composition
filling the entire posterior cavity
 Schematic diagram of the human eye.
It shows a horizontal section through the right eye.
• The cornea and sclera are connected by an area
termed the limbus
• The iris is the pigmented circular structure
concentrically surrounding the center of the eye,
the pupil
• The pupil which appears to be black. The size of the
pupil, which controls the amount of light entering
the eye, is adjusted by the iris' dilator and sphincter
muscles
• Light energy enters the eye through the cornea, through
the pupil and then through the lens
• The lens shape is changed for near focus
(accommodation) and is controlled by the ciliary muscle
• Photons of light falling on the light-sensitive cells of the
retina (photoreceptor cones and rods) are converted into
electrical signals that are transmitted to the brain by the
optic nerve and interpreted as sight and vision
• The eyeball grows rapidly, increasing from about 16–17
millimetres at birth to 22.5–23 mm by three years of age.
By age 12, the eye attains its full size

• The eyes are the visual organs of the human body, and
move using a system of six muscles. The retina, a
specialised type of tissue containing photoreceptors,
senses light. These specialised cells convert light
into electrochemical signals. These signals travel along
the optic nerve fibers to the brain, where they are
interpreted as vision in the visual cortex
Tear system

a = lacrimal gland
b = superior lacrimal punctum
c = superior lacrimal canal
d = lacrimal sac
e = inferior lacrimal punctum
f = inferior lacrimal canal
g = nasolacrimal canal
The lacrimal apparatus

is the physiological system containing the orbital structures

for tear production and drainage
It consists of :
• The lacrimal gland, which secretes the tears, and its
excretory ducts, which convey the fluid to the surface of
the human eye; it is a serous gland located in lacrimal fossa
• The lacrimal canaliculi, the lacrimal sac, and the nasolacrimal
duct, by which the fluid is conveyed into the cavity of
the nose, emptying anterioinferiorly to the inferior nasal
conchae from the nasolacrimal duct
• In contrast to the normal moisture of the eyes or
even crying, there can be persistent dryness,
scratching, itchiness and burning in the eyes, which
are signs of dry eye syndrome (DES) or
keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS)

• With this syndrome, the lacrimal glands produce less

lacrimal fluid, which mainly occurs with ageing or
certain medications.
• Schirmer test, can be used to determine the level of
dryness of the eye.

• Treatment varies, according to aetiology and includes

avoidance of exacerbating factors :
• tear stimulation and supplementation
• increasing tear retention
• eyelid cleansing
• treatment of eye inflammation
The six muscles that control its movements :
1. lateral rectus
2. medial rectus
3. inferior rectus
4. superior rectus
5. inferior oblique
6. superior oblique.
The initial clinical examination of the extraoccular eye
muscles is done by examining the movement of the
globe of the eye through the six cardinal eye movements
To evaluate for weakness or imbalance of the muscles, a
penlight is shone directly on the corneas. Expected normal
results of the corneal light reflex is when the penlight's
reflection is located in the centre of both corneas, equally
• Blurred vision
is an ocular symptom where vision becomes
less precise and there is added difficulty to
resolve fine details.
There are many causes of blurred vision:

1. Refractive error
2. Presbyopia—Difficulty focusing on objects that are close. Common
in the elderly (Accommodation tends to decrease with age.)
3. Cataracts—Cloudiness over the eye's lens, causing poor night-time
vision, halos around lights and sensitivity to glare. Daytime vision is
eventually affected. Common in the elderly
4. Glaucoma—Increased pressure in the eye, causing poor night vision,
blind spots, and loss of vision to either side. A major cause of
blindness. Glaucoma can happen gradually or suddenly—if sudden,
it is a medical emergency
1. Macular degeneration—Loss of central vision, blurred vision
(especially while reading), distorted vision (like seeing wavy lines),
and colors appearing faded. The most common cause of blindness
in people over age 60
2. Eye infection, inflammation, or injury
3. Sjögren's syndrome, a chronic autoimmuneinflammatory disease
that destroys moisture producing glands, including lacrimal (tear)
4. Optic neuritis—Inflammation of the optic nerve from infection or
multiple sclerosis. You may have pain when you move your eye or
touch it through the eyelid
5. Use of atropine or other anticholinergics
1. Diabetes—Poorly controlled blood sugar can lead to
temporary swelling of the lens of the eye, resulting in
blurred vision
2. Diabetic retinopathy—This complication of diabetes can
lead to bleeding into the retina. Another common cause
of blindness
3. Floaters—Tiny particles drifting across the eye. Although
often brief and harmless, they may be a sign of retinal
detachment
4. Retinal detachment—Symptoms include floaters, flashes
of light across your visual field, or a sensation of a shade
or curtain hanging on one side of your visual field
Eye strain (asthenopia)

• is an eye condition that manifests

through nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue,
pain in or around the eyes, blurred
vision, headache, and occasional double vision
• Symptoms often occur after reading, computer
work, or other close activities that involve
tedious visual tasks
• Sometimes asthenopia can be due to specific
visual problems
For example : uncorrected refraction errors
or binocular vision problems such as
accommodative insufficiency or heterophoria,
can also be a result of the distortion caused by
the refractive properties of certain types of
spectacle lenses.
The Eyelid

• Is a thin fold of skin that covers and protects

an eye
• The levator palpebrae superioris muscle retracts
the eyelid, exposing the cornea to the outside,
giving vision. This can be either voluntarily or
involuntarily.
• The human eyelid features a row
of eyelashes along the eyelid margin, which serve
to heighten the protection of the eye from dust
and foreign debris, as well as from perspiration
• The eyelid is made up of several layers; from superficial to
deep, these are:
• Skin, subcutaneous tissue, orbicularis oculi, orbital
septum, tarsal plates and palpebral conjunctiva.
• The meibomian glands lie within the eyelid and secrete the
lipid part of the tear film.
• The skin is similar to areas elsewhere, but is relatively
thin and has more pigment cells. It contains sweat glands
and hairs
• The skin of the eyelid contains the greatest concentration
of sebaceous glands found anywhere in the body
• The sensory nerve supply to the upper eyelids is from
the infratrochlear, supratrochlear, supraorbital and
the lacrimal nerves from the ophthalmic branch (V1)
of the trigeminal nerve

• The eyelids are supplied with blood by two arches on

each upper and lower lid. The arches are formed
by anastomoses from the lacrimal
artery and ophthalmic artery
Most common eyelid disorders
• Hordeolum (stye) is an infection of the sebaceous
glands of Zeis usually caused by Staphylococcus
aureus bacteria, similar to the more common
condition Acne vulgaris
• Chalazion (plural: chalazia) is caused by the obstruction of
the oil glands and can occur in both upper and lower
eyelids
• Eyelid tumors and Eyelid edema
• Blepharospasm (eyelid twitching) is an involuntary spasm of
the eyelid muscle
• Ptosis, the upper eyelid droops or sags due to weakness or
paralysis of the levator muscle (responsible for raising the
eyelid), or due to damage to nerves controlling the muscle
• Ectropion is another aging-related eyelid condition that may
lead to chronic eye irritation and scarring. It may also be the
result of allergies
• Entropion usually results from aging, but sometimes can be
due to a congenital defect, a spastic eyelid muscle, or a scar
on the inside of the lid that could be from surgery, injury or
disease
• Blepharitis is the irritation of the lid margin, where
eyelashes join the eyelid. This is a common condition
that causes inflammation of the eyelids and which is
quite difficult to manage because it tends to recur

• Trichiasis : eyelash grow inwards toward the eye.

The lashes rub against the cornea, the conjunctiva,
and the inner surface of the eyelids. This irritates the
eye