Flashes and Floaters
Have you often seen floating things in your vision maybe if you looked up at the sun? Has this issue gotten worse recently, or maybe over the years? Is this becoming a routine problem? If flashes and floaters in your vision is becoming a problem for you please feel free to visit either of our 2 locations in Encino and Beverly Hills for a thorough eye health exam of your retina.
Understanding flashes and floaters
The eye is filled with a clear jelly called the vitreous gel. The vitreous gel inflates the back part of the eye in the way that water inflates a water balloon. As we age, the vitreous gel begins to dissolve into a more watery form. Once enough of the vitreous gel has dissolved (usually when we are in our late 50s or early 60s), the gel pulls free of its attachments to the back of the eye. This sudden and often dramatic event, called a posterior vitreous detachment, often causes a number of symptoms that can be alarming.
One common symptom of a posterior vitreous detachment is the appearance of floaters. Floaters are exactly what they sound like: tiny bits of debris that appear when the vitreous gel is separated from the back of the eye. These bits of cloudy debris float in the liquefied vitreous like snow in a snow globe. If you have a single, small floater, you may have the sensation that a bug is flying in your face. Often, in eyes with posterior vitreous detachments, the floaters are bigger and somewhat stringy, and you may describe it as a spider web or cobweb in your vision. Typically, these floaters will move around in your vision, especially when you move your eyes around. Floaters usually do not stay in exactly the same spot in your vision.
Many people that develop flashes and floaters can get very concerned and this is normal. Typically, floaters may appear as small specks or dark shadows. These specks can actually move or float around in the visual field. This condition develops from changes in the back of the eye also known as the vitreous cavity.