Tunnel vision involves the loss of what visual fields?

• Correct Answer: peripheral
• underwater
• distant
• quickly-moving

Explanation: A unique clinical presentation that relates to this anatomic arrangement is the loss of lateral peripheral vision, known as bilateral hemianopia. This is different from “tunnel vision” because the superior and inferior peripheral fields are not lost. Visual field deficits can be disturbing for a patient, but in this case, the cause is not within the visual system itself. A growth of the pituitary gland presses against the optic chiasm and interferes with signal transmission. However, the axons projecting to the same side of the brain are unaffected. Therefore, the patient loses the outermost areas of their field of vision and cannot see objects to their right and left. Extending from the optic chiasm, the axons of the visual system are referred to as the optic tract instead of the optic nerve. The optic tract has three major targets, two in the diencephalon and one in the midbrain. The connection between the eyes and diencephalon is demonstrated during development, in which the neural tissue of the retina differentiates from that of the diencephalon by the growth of the secondary vesicles. The connections of the retina into the CNS are a holdover from this developmental association. The majority of the connections of the optic tract are to the thalamus—specifically, the lateral geniculate nucleus. Axons from this nucleus then project to the visual cortex of the cerebrum, located in the occipital lobe. Another target of the optic tract is the superior colliculus. In addition, a very small number of RGC axons project from the optic chiasm to the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus. These RGCs are photosensitive, in that they respond to the presence or absence of light. Unlike the photoreceptors, however, these photosensitive RGCs cannot be used to perceive images. By simply responding to the absence or presence of light, these RGCs can send information about day length. The perceived proportion of sunlight to darkness establishes the circadian rhythm of our bodies, allowing certain physiological events to occur at approximately the same time every day.

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