What Does the Ophthalmic Artery Supply? The Critical Things You Should Know!

Be careful if you are suffering from a severe loss of vision issue. It happens because your ophthalmic artery is damaged. The process happens when the ophthalmologist diagnoses ischemia on your inner and outer retina. Here, we are about to discuss many things, including what does the ophthalmic artery supply? You will also learn the impacts if the supply is interrupted.

What is Ophthalmic Artery?

Before learning about the function of the Ophthalmic Artery, you should know first what it is. It is not only your eyes that have an artery but also your head. This artery is so vital since it is connected to the eye.

Some Ophthalmic artery structures even connect to the nose, face, and meninges. One of the functions of the ophthalmic artery is to supply blood to the inner layer of the retina. Imagine that this artery supplies about two-thirds of the retina.

That’s why you are about to suffer from sudden visual loss when there is a problem with the supply process. It means that your blood is not flowing well to the eyes and its vital parts.

The Importance of Ophthalmic Artery 

Indeed, an ophthalmic artery should work well in your body. The task of this artery is to supply blood to some parts of your body, including the eyeball, ocular muscles, and others. Say there is a problem with your ophthalmic artery.

It means that the flow of the blood around those parts is being interrupted. This interruption affects the part. For example, you will lose your vision when the issue is around the eyeball.

The Parts that Get Blood and Oxygen Supply via Ophthalmic Artery

What does the ophthalmic artery supply? It supplies blood and oxygen to the orbit of the eyes, nose, face, and meninges. Let’s learn more about these parts below.

The Orbit of the Eyes

The orbit of the eyes is the bone cavity in the skull that covers the eyeball, the muscles around the eye, the lacrimal gland, the blood vessels, and nerves. So, how do ophthalmic arteries supply blood and oxygen to the orbit of the eyes?

This artery will supply blood and oxygen to its branch known as the central retinal artery. It continues to follow the blood and oxygen to the dura mater of the optic nerve. The journey of the blood and oxygen via this artery has not stopped there yet.

It flows to the inner layers of the retina. You can see everything with your eyes normally when your retina receives enough blood and oxygen. The ophthalmic artery also has another branch known as the lacrimal artery.

This artery also connects to the orbit of the eyes. The blood and oxygen flow to the lateral rectus muscle via the lacrimal artery. The system divided the blood and oxygen to the eyelids, lacrimal gland, and conjunctiva.

ophthalmic artery supply

Nose 

In your anatomy, the nose is the part of the respiratory system. This part of the body helps air to flow to your body. There is also a part of the nose that can filter debris, and warm, and moistens the air. You can also smell a variety of fragrances because of the nose.

Now, how does the ophthalmic artery supply blood and oxygen to your nose? The artery will flow the blood and oxygen to the medial orbital wall. It turns to the anterior ethmoidal artery, brings blood and oxygen to the anterior ethmoidal canal and passes through the nose. This artery also transports blood and oxygen to the anterior or middle ethmoidal and frontal sinuses.

Face 

In anatomy, the human face includes the head, bones, muscles, and neurovascular structures. The structures of the face have a connection with emotions, eating, seeing, smelling, and communication.

You can also identify person to person by seeing their face. It is divided into three different regions, which are upper face, middle face, and lower face. The upper face is from the hairline up to under the lower eyelid. It includes the forehead, eyes, and temporal region.

The middle face region is from the lower eyelid up to above the upper lip. The parts of the middle face are including the nose, cheeks, and ears. The lower face is from the upper lip up to the lower border of the chin. This region includes the lips and jaws.

There are so many ways for the ophthalmic artery to transfer blood and oxygen to the face. It depends on to which region the blood and oxygen are about to flow. The explanation about the orbit of the eyes and nose above shows the pathways of blood and oxygen via the ophthalmic artery to the regions of your face.

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Meninges 

Your brain is protected by three different membranes. These membranes are known as meninges. The first membrane is the dura mater. It is the outer layer. The location is the closest to the skull. The second membrane is known as the arachnoid mater. The location of this membrane is in the middle, between the dura mater and the pia mater. The last membrane is called a pia meter.

It is the inner layer and the closest to the brain tissue. Besides protecting the brain and spinal cord, the meninges provide a support system for blood vessels. This system transfers blood to the Central Nervous System (CNS) tissues, nerves, lymphatics, and cerebrospinal fluid.

The ophthalmic artery has a branch known as the middle meningeal artery. The ophthalmic artery transfers blood and oxygen to the middle meningeal artery. This artery will flow the blood and oxygen to the dura meter. The blood and oxygen support the inner skull face on the middle meningeal artery and enter the dura meter.

Two Terminal Branches of the Ophthalmic Artery 

The Ophthalmic Artery has two terminal branches. They are known as the supratrochlear and the dorsal nasal artery. Check the explanation below.

Supratrochlear Artery 

As one of the branches of the ophthalmic artery, it helps to supply blood to part of the orbit of the eye and face. The blood is about to flow to the superior rectus and some muscles, including the levator palpebrae superioris.

Then, it projects forward with the support from supra-orbital nerves. The flow of the blood continues to the scalp and the frontalis muscle. The supratrochlear artery supplies blood to some parts, including the superior rectus, levator muscles, frontal bone, upper eyelid, scalp, and others.

Dorsal Nasal Artery 

The flow of the blood via the dorsal nasal artery starts from a part known as the orbital septum. The position of this part is above the medial canthal tendon. This artery then supports the blood to flow along the nose and lacrimal sac.

Vision Loss Issues Caused by the Damaged of the Ophthalmic Artery 

The damage to the ophthalmic artery will interrupt the blood flows. One of the effects of this issue is vision loss known as retinal artery occlusion. It happens when there is a blockage of the retinal artery. Slowly but surely, your retina will lack oxygen and blood.

As a result, you can’t see anything. There are two types of visual loss issues caused by damage to the ophthalmic artery, which are Central Retinal Artery Occlusion (CRAO) and Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion (BRAO).

Central Retinal Artery Occlusion (CRAO) 

It is a condition when there is a blockage in the main artery in the retina. People with CRAO will lose their vision. Some of them can see even with CRAO because of an extra artery known as a cilioretinal artery. This extra artery works normally as long as it is not affected by the blockage.

Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion (BRAO)

Be careful when there is a blockage in a small artery. This problem can cause BRAO. The effect of this problem is a loss of a section of your visual field. People with BRAO are often blind in one side of their eyes.

The worse part of this problem is that sometimes it appears without any symptoms. You will get shocked because suddenly you can’t see something normally as before. It often happens because the center of your eye is not affected or the blockage is so small.

The Way to Keep Ophthalmic Artery Works Well 

The ophthalmic artery must work maximally because it supplies blood and oxygen to some vital parts of your body. So, are there things you can do to keep your ophthalmic artery supplying blood and oxygen well? It means that you are preventing clogged issues in this artery. Check the tips to keep your ophthalmic artery healthy.

Control Your Cholesterol and Blood Pressure 

The first thing you should do to prevent artery-clogging issues is by controlling your cholesterol and blood pressure level. The simplest way to do it is by doing a plant-based diet. Experts say that a plant-based diet can significantly reduce the risk of coronary artery disease.

This disease is associated with clogged arteries, including the ophthalmic artery. In this case, you can try to eat grains, legumes, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Remember! Stop eating high saturated fat foods! Smokers also have to stop smoking from now on to prevent clogged arteries.

Eat Healthier Food 

You are what you consume! Healthy people often control their eating habits. They only eat something useful for their body, including for the ophthalmic artery. For instance, you should eat more fruits and vegetables.

Combine your meal with good fats or unsaturated fats meals. Try to eat more nuts, avocadoes, and fish. It is okay if you want to eat meat and dairy products, yet you should be more selective. Instead of eating fatty meats, it will be better if you eat lean meat. Eating more plant-based meals is the key to keeping your ophthalmic artery stronger and flowing blood and oxygen smoothly.

Exercise More 

Consuming healthy meals is not enough. You should also do exercise. It helps to improve your cardiovascular. The research concludes that exercise helps to reduce the risk of cardiac issues. Experts suggest you exercise at least 150 minutes per week.

You don’t have to do hard exercises. Walking is one of the best ways to keep your metabolism healthier. The healthier your metabolism, the stronger your arteries.

Maintain Your Weight 

Overweight people often suffer from a variety of diseases, including coronary diseases. Because of that, you must maintain your weight. The better your eating habits and exercise, the more ideal your weight. Experts explain that you should reduce your body weight by 3 to 5 percent. This trick helps to boost your metabolism and control your cholesterol. You can also easily get your ideal weight.

Stop Smoking and Drink Alcohol 

Some smokers suffer from a condition known as atherosclerosis. It is a condition that there are some plaques around the vital organs, including arteries. The plaques are growing larger when you don’t stop smoking. Slowly but surely, it affects the work of the arteries.

At a certain point, there is a clog in the arteries that interrupt the supply of blood and oxygen to the brain and other organs. It is the same case if you are an alcoholic. The higher the alcohol contamination in the body, the worser your cholesterol level. The higher the cholesterol levels, the higher the risk of clogging in the arteries, including the ophthalmic artery.

Maintain Your Stress Level 

It is not only food that affects your health but also your emotional health. Indeed, emotional health directly impacts physical health. That’s why people with a higher stress level often suffered from a variety of diseases, including clogged arteries.

So, maintain your stress level. Try to take a holiday and spend more time with your family. It will be great to have time to do your favorite activities. Going outside, such as to the beach, forest, or mountain is a great option to reduce stress levels.

Finally, you know the work of the ophthalmic artery in your body. The most important thing is that you get the answer “what does ophthalmic artery supply?“

It is also important to check your eyes with the ophthalmologist to know their condition. On the other hand, ophthalmologists who want to start an ophthalmology clinic can get the supply at seaophthalmic.com.