The Morphological Difference Between Glaucoma and Other Optic Neuropathies

The defining features of a glaucomatous optic neuropathy include glaucomatous cupping which is difficult to describe and therefore phenotype except when deep cupping is present and is accompanied by some degree of excavation of the rim tissues beneath Bruchs Membrane Opening (BMO) and/or the anterior scleral canal opening. Discussion of what constitutes glaucomatous cupping are made difficult by the fact that cupping is a clinical term which is used to describe optic nerve head (ONH) structural change in all forms of optic neuropathy, however cupping is also used as a synonym for the pathophysiology of glaucomatous damage to the ONH. Because the clinical and pathophysiologic contexts for cupping are seldom clarified there is a confusing literature regarding the presence, importance and meaning of cupping in a variety of disorders.