Parafovea

The parafovea is an annular belt surrounding the fovea, and is part of the macula lutea of the retina in the eye. It lies outside the foveola and perifovea and extends to approximately 1.25 mm from the center of the fovea.

This region is characterized by a higher density of ganglion cells than the perifovea, though less dense than the fovea itself. The parafovea plays a crucial role in visual processing, particularly for spatial vision and reading. Damage to the parafovea can lead to difficulties in these areas.

The cells within the parafovea provide input to the magnocellular and parvocellular pathways, contributing to the processing of motion, form, and color perception.