Augenabschnitt

Augenabschnitt is a term used in German ophthalmology to refer to an anatomical area of the eye. It describes a functional subdivision of the organ for the purposes of anatomy, pathology, and imaging. In the German medical literature it is common to distinguish between the Vorderer Augenabschnitt (anterior segment) and the Hinterer Augenabschnitt (posterior segment).

Vorderer Augenabschnitt includes the structures in front of the lens: the cornea, the anterior chamber, the iris, the ciliary body, and the lens, along with the aqueous humor that fills the chambers. The health of these structures is routinely assessed with slit-lamp biomicroscopy, tonometry, and gonioscopy, because conditions such as keratitis, cataract, glaucoma, and uveitis primarily involve this segment.

Hinterer Augenabschnitt comprises the vitreous body, retina, choroid, and the optic nerve. Evaluation of this segment employs fundoscopy, optical coherence tomography (OCT), fluorescein angiography, and B-scan ultrasound. Pathologies in the posterior segment include retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusions, and optic neuropathies.

The boundary between anterior and posterior segments is defined functionally around the posterior surface of the lens and the adjacent ciliary region, though the two segments are highly interconnected in physiology and disease. In everyday clinical use, Augenabschnitt serves to discuss segment-related diagnostics, surgical planning, and educational descriptions. In English-language ophthalmology, the terms anterior segment and posterior segment are more common, but the German term Augenabschnitt remains widespread in medical literature.