Eye Floaters: A Bigger Issue?
You may have been experiencing eye floaters without even really noticing it. Alternatively, you may have noticed them and wondered what they are. Eye floaters are the speck or thread-like images you might see in your vision that you know don’t exist. They may look like black or grey spots, strings, or even cob-web like structures that seem to drift away when you focus your attention on them. Eye floaters are quite common, and many people experience them throughout their lives without significant impedance to their daily functionings.
Floaters are caused by tiny clumps of protein or cells that clump together in the vitreous humor, which is the gel that the lens of our eye rests on. Light goes into the lens, through the vitreous humor and into the retina at the back of our eyeballs for us to be able to see anything. Clumps in the vitreous humor can cast shadows onto the retina, which cause floaters. Age is a significant risk factor for developing floaters because with age, the vitreous humor becomes less of a gel and more of a liquid, making microscopic particles more likely to clump together. Other risk factors include injury to the eye, nearsightedness, eye inflammation, and diabetic retinopathy.
Although eye floaters are often benign, there are some cases where floaters are a sign of a serious, underlying medical issue. One serious condition known as retinal detachment is often accompanied by warning signs like a sudden new onset of floaters and decline in central vision. Retinal vitreous detachment occurs when the vitreous shrinks and pulls at the retina. Though usually harmless, in one out of 6 patients this can cause retinal tearing. The torn retina may be separated from tissues providing nourishment, causing retinal detachment. This can lead to permanent vision loss, requires immediate ophthalmologist attention, and doesn’t cause any pain. This is why it is very important to notice sudden change in the appearance of eye floaters. Prompt evaluation and detection can prevent the retina from detaching, using techniques such as laser photocoagulation and cryopexy.
In most cases, eye floaters are harmless -- however, there are cases where they can be signals for underlying issues. For most situations with eye floaters, ophthalmologists do not recommend surgery, as the risk of vision loss outweighs the improvement in vision. The Aging Eye, a Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School, recommends this one trick: moving your eyes from side to side or top to bottom. Doing this may help shift the floater and temporarily solve the problem.
References:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/eye-floaters/symptoms-causes/syc-20372346