Flashes of bright light may appear as momentary streaks of light which really are not there. Flashes occur when mechanical stresses on the vitreous or retina create an artificial stimulation of the retinal nerve cells.
Floaters can appear intermittently, drift around and blur vision.
Floaters refer to the apparent floating spots that appear in your central vision. Floaters are small cloudy particles present in the back cavity of the eye called the vitreous and are commonly seen by many people. Floaters are often remnants of a blood vessel which once existed between the optic nerve and the lens. Before you were born, this vessel broke up into many bits. Floaters can also occur when new problems begin in the posterior segment of the eye. Retinal tears, holes and detachments have the potential to produce many new floaters often described as a “shower of gnats”.
Vitreous Detachments occur in most people as we age. A vitreous detachment will produce both flashes and floaters. Vitreous detachments occur when the normally gel-like vitreous breaks down into a less viscous, watery state. This will often create fears of a retinal detachment in some people. The truest symptom of a retinal detachment is the sudden loss of peripheral or central vision. This is often described as a curtain descending over one eye. Unfortunately, many individuals are not aware of the loss of a single eye’s peripheral vision until it is too late. Only a dilated eye examination will reveal if the symptoms are caused by a retinal or vitreous detachment.
The best thing to do if you notice a sudden onset or increase in flashes, floaters or curtains is to call our office so we may directly inspect the retina. Do not delay calling us even if it occurs at night or on a weekend.
A number of different conditions of the vitreous or retina can produce floaters.
sophie gunn
// Aug 14, 2009 at 12:15 pm
My daughter sees floaters all the time, even when she closes her eyes. She reports having been seeing these floaters “forever”, and she is only 6 years old. Two different exams of her eyes have shown that there is nothing wrong physically with her eyes/retinas…but is there anything to do to stop these floaters blocking her vision?
Dr Doug Cook
// Aug 14, 2009 at 1:02 pm
A vitrectomy is a procedure that removes the vitreous – taking the floaters along with it. It is replaced with a sterile solution. This procedure has a risk of itself producing a retinal detachment. The chances of this complication can be as high as 10%. Most retinal specialists we have worked with greatly discourage people from this procedure if their visual acuity is 20/40 or better. The risk of complications is usually not worth the minor nuisance value of floaters. I tell patients floaters behave like bad neighbors, they show up when you would not rather deal with them. The strategy of coping with both is the same – ignore them and they eventually go away.