The Fleeting Floaters In Your Eye

Eye floaters can be both amusing and a cause for concern. Eye floaters are also mysterious. Most of us can remember trying to center in on some unknown particle floating around in our vision, which avoids scrutiny every time you try to focus on it. They’re usually so small that someone else looking will never be able to see them. They most often look like a regular spec of dirt, or a flash of light. Sometimes they have a tail, and look like a small tadpole swimming around in your field of vision.

Eye floaters are usually not a cause for concern. There are different causes for floaters. Sometimes microscopic pieces of dirt or debris that get caught in the vitreous fluid in the eyeball, or sometimes clumps of cells that are set adrift on the vitreous humor. Not big enough to be seen, they are amplified by the light and cause shadows that we do see. Also, changes in the vitreous humor as we age can cause floaters to appear. These are, by and large, harmless as well.

Floaters are by far the most common reason people go to see an optometrist. Even though the prognosis when seeing floaters is pretty good, if this is an unusual experience for you then you should make an appointment to get it checked out. If these appear more frequently, or if you see many at a time, it could signal a separation of the vitreous humor from the retina, which sometimes occurs with aging. The eyes often show symptoms of other conditions in the body, as well as the effects of wear and tear over the years. It may take a medical professional to tell if what you see is related to the eyes themselves.

Sometimes light flashes and other symptoms are grouped in an all-encompassing category called floaters, but these are actually very different and can signal other eye problems. Usually floaters are visible against a white or light colored wall, and not so much against a dark background. If you see them against a dark background, there may be an issue. As with most medical questions when in doubt, check it out.

If you’re concerned about eye floaters, contact Valuvision to schedule an eye exam at your nearest location.