Common histopathological changes in aged human orbital arteries

The physiology of the orbital arteries supplying the eye is currently under intensive investigation. However, while the anatomical distribution of these vessels in humans is well known, their normal histology and age-related or other pathologic alterations have hardly been studied. We obtained at autopsy 10 orbits from persons aged > or = 74 years, and two orbits from a person aged 47 years. Specimens were taken from 20 locations along the orbital arteries, from the internal carotid to the globe, and studied by light microscopy. We observed the following arteriosclerotic changes, in order of decreasing frequency: intimal hyperplasia, medial atrophy, atherosclerotic fibrous plaques, and calcifications of the internal elastic lamina. As a rule, the intensity of the changes decreased from proximal to distal. This study shows that aged human orbital arteries are readily subject to degenerative changes that may play an important role in ophthalmic vascular disease.