Evaluation of the spontaneous retinal vein pulse

The commonly observed retinal venous pulse is thought to occur in a Starling resistor-like fashion due to the pulsatility of the intraocular pressure. Hence in contrast to vascular pressure measurements obtained in the cat, it is believed that the collapse of the retinal vein is in phase with the peak intraocular pressure. Retinal pulse images synchronized to the intraocular pressures in healthy adults concur with the experimental findings. This implies a flow rather than pressure induced vascular collapse occuring at the edge of the optic disk.