BRS BRS Visual Anatomy & Pathology 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is characterized by which pattern of vision loss?
- Central vision loss first
- Superior visual field loss first
- Peripheral vision loss progressing inward (Correct answer)
- Sudden total blindness
Correct answer: Peripheral vision loss progressing inward
Retinitis pigmentosa is a hereditary degenerative disease that causes progressive peripheral vision loss (tunnel vision) as rod photoreceptors deteriorate from the periphery inward.
Question 2: What is the fovea, and why is it significant in visual rehabilitation?
- The optic disc; it creates the natural blind spot
- The area of highest cone density providing sharpest central vision; its loss severely impacts acuity (Correct answer)
- The peripheral retina; it mediates night vision
- The ciliary body; it controls lens accommodation
Correct answer: The area of highest cone density providing sharpest central vision; its loss severely impacts acuity
The fovea is a small pit at the center of the macula with the highest density of cones, providing the clearest, most detailed vision; its damage (as in AMD) causes severe central vision impairment.
Question 3: Hemianopia refers to which type of visual field loss?
- Loss of vision in one eye entirely
- Loss of the central 10 degrees of vision
- Loss of half the visual field in one or both eyes (Correct answer)
- Fluctuating vision in low-light conditions
Correct answer: Loss of half the visual field in one or both eyes
Hemianopia is the loss of vision in half of the visual field, typically resulting from damage to the optic tract, optic radiation, or visual cortex (commonly after stroke).
Question 4: Which condition involves an irregular curvature of the cornea, causing distorted and blurred vision?
- Presbyopia
- Keratoconus (Correct answer)
- Amblyopia
- Strabismus
Correct answer: Keratoconus
Keratoconus is a progressive eye disease where the cornea thins and bulges into a cone shape, causing significant visual distortion that may require specialty contact lenses or corneal transplantation.
Question 5: What is nystagmus, and how does it affect visual function?
- Increased intraocular pressure reducing peripheral vision
- Involuntary rhythmic eye movements that reduce visual acuity and stability (Correct answer)
- Inflammation of the optic nerve causing pain with eye movement
- A refractive error corrected with standard glasses
Correct answer: Involuntary rhythmic eye movements that reduce visual acuity and stability
Nystagmus consists of involuntary, repetitive eye movements that reduce visual acuity, affect gaze stability, and can interfere with reading and mobility tasks.
Question 6: The optic disc (optic nerve head) is significant because it represents which functional characteristic?
- The area of maximum visual acuity
- The physiological blind spot where there are no photoreceptors (Correct answer)
- The location of the highest cone concentration
- The entrance point of retinal blood vessels only
Correct answer: The physiological blind spot where there are no photoreceptors
The optic disc is the point where the optic nerve exits the eye; it has no photoreceptors and creates a natural physiological blind spot in each eye's visual field.
BRS BRS Visual Anatomy & Pathology 2
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is characterized by which pattern of vision loss?