Central retinal artery occlusion

Central retinal artery occlusion is characterized by painless, acute vision loss in one eye.

[1] Upon fundoscopic exam, one would expect to find: cherry-red spot (90%) (a morphologic description in which the normally red background of the choroid is sharply outlined by the swollen opaque retina in the central retina), retinal opacity in the posterior pole (58%), pallor (39%), retinal arterial attenuation (32%), and optic disk edema (22%).

[5][6] Other causes can include dissecting aneurysms and arterial spasms, and as a complication of patient positioning causing external compression of the eye compressing flow to the central retinal artery (e.g. in spine surgeries in the prone position).

Irreversible damage to neural tissue can occur after approximately 15 minutes of complete blockage to the central retinal artery, but this time may vary between people.

[14] Risk factors for CRAO include the following: being over 50 years of age, male gender, smoking, hypertension, tranexamic acid, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, angina, valvular disease, transient hemiparesis, cancer, hypercoagulable blood conditions, lupus, or a family history of cerebrovascular or cardiovascular issues.