3-DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURE OF HUMAN RETINAL-VESSELS STUDIED BY VASCULAR CASTING

A new casting technique for studying the three-dimensional structure o f the human retinal vascular system on post mortem tissue was develope d. The technique was designed to provide an overview presentation of t he retinal vasculature such that localized areas with vascular patholo gy could be identified for further analysis of three-dimensional struc ture. The paper presents qualitative characteristics of three-dimensio nal structure in the normal human retinal vascular bed, to provide a b asis for future studies on vascular impairment in retinal disease.