Eye Spiral

While they may look like the delicately twisting veins of a leaf, these are veins of a different kind. They're the blood vessels in the retina – the structure at the back of the eye packed with light-sensing cells that enable us to see. This picture was created using scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, where a fluorescent dye is injected into the bloodstream. Eventually it reaches the tiny vessels in the retina, where it glows under blue laser light. Some of the tiny vessels in the centre of this image are leaking, showing up as fuzzy bright regions against the neat network. In patients with a condition known as central serous chorioretinopathy, this leaked fluid builds up in small pools under the retina – much like a blister under the skin – causing sight problems. Techniques like this are vital for diagnosing the problem, and seeing how it respond to treatment.

Written by Kat Arney

Kat Arney

Writer

Dr Kat Arney is an award-winning science writer, broadcaster and public speaker, and is the founder and Creative Director of First Create The Media.

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• Image by Richard Hancock
• This image is included in the International Images for Science 2015 exhibition, organised by the Royal Photographic Society and supported by Siemens as part of the Curiosity Project.
• Copyright held by the photographer