Retinal Detachment: Overview

True retinal detachment is defined as the separation of the neurosensory retina from the underlying retinal pigment epithelium, [7] causing a lack of stimulation to the photoreceptor layer (fig 1, below).

Posterior vitreous detachment can cause very similar symptoms but has a slightly different pathological cause.

In this image, the innermost retinal layers are at the bottom.