**Author details**

Unaffected male carriers had higher RNFL thickness in the temporal and inferior quadrants which was more pronounced in those with the 11778 mutation. Unaffected female carriers had a RNFL thickness increase in the temporal quadrant more pronounced in those with the 11778 mutation (110). Patients with the 11778 mutation tend to have increased RNFL thickness in the early stages of the disease and decreased thickness in the later stages compared to those with

Primary (not associated with previous optic disc swelling. Most common causes are compres‐ sive lesions of the optic pathways up to the lateral geniculate bodies, hereditary disorders and

Secondary (following longstanding swelling of the optic nerve head (papilledema, AION,

Consecutive (following retinal diseases with widespread destruction of the retina such as

The new devices for the analysis of RNFL have been employed for the differential diagnosis of those types of optic atrophy in which the features of glaucomatous versus non-glaucoma‐ tous optic nerve damage are not clear. Autosomal dominant optic atrophy (ADOA, Kjer's optic neuropathy) is a rare hereditary disorder [it affects 1:35,000 people in the general population (112)] that can be misdiagnosed for normal tension glaucoma (113) and in this cases OCT provide useful information in order to reach the correct diagnosis. Several reports have shown that eyes with ADOA have reduced mean RNFL thickness and the quadrant most commonly affected being the temporal one (114-117). In contrast the glaucomatous process typically affects the inferior and superior sectors (118). There is also a reduction in macular thickness in patients with ADOA (119). Barboni et al (120) reported that the optic nerve heads in patients

Chiasmal compressive lesions produce a characteristic bitemporal hemianopia which is due to the preservation of the uncrossed fibers that originate from the temporal retina and enter the optic disc with the superior and inferior arcuate bands. The main damage therefore occurs in the nasal and temporal sectors of the disc and causes a characteristic ophthalmoscopic appearance named band atrophy. OCT has shown that not only the nasal and temporal sectors of the RNFL are affected but also the superior and inferior ones (121-123). OCT analysis of the optic nerve head could depict better than the Heidelberg Retina Tomograph the rim loss and

The new imaging modalities of the optic nerve head and RNFL thickness can describe with high accuracy the morphology of the above structures. However none of them has 100% accuracy in the diagnosis of glaucoma. RNFL thickness analysis seems to perform better than

the 14484 mutation (111).

318 Glaucoma - Basic and Clinical Aspects

Optic atrophy is classified aetiologically as:

retinitis pigmentosa, central retinal artery occlusion, vasculitis)

with ADOA have smaller size compared to normal controls.

subsequently the increased cup area in eyes with band atrophy (124).

**9.5. Optic atrophy**

multiple sclerosis).

papillitis)

**Summary box**

Vassilis Kozobolis, Aristeidis Konstantinidis\* and Georgios Labiris

\*Address all correspondence to: aristeidiskon@hotmail.com

Eye Department, University Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece
