Eye floaters are little oddly shaped objects that appear in your vision, often when one looks at bright light such as a blue sky.
Writer: Dr Farokh Irani, MBBS(melb), Dip Anat, FRANZCO Eye surgeon and Specialist
Their shapes vary greatly, but will often appear as spots, cobwebs, or randomly shaped stringy objects. In most cases these eye floaters are caused by pieces of the gel-like vitreous breaking off from the back portion of your eye and then floating about in your eyeball.
The “vitreous”, is a clear gel that fills the gap between your retina and lens, helping maintain the round shape of your eye in the process. This gel is about 99 per cent water and 1 per cent other elements.
With age then, pieces of gel break off and float around. When light passes through this area, it creates a shadow on your retina. This shadow is actually what you are seeing when you see the eye floaters.
These floating specs never seem to stay still because the floaters are suspended in the vitreous and so move when your eye
moves. So as you try to look at them,
they will appear to drift with your eye
movement.
If you ever see a lot of new floaters that appear out of no where, with, possibly, with some light flashes, you should get to an eye doctor immediately.
This is because the vitreous is detaching from the Retina and if it pulls too hard, a Retinal tear may form which may lead on to a Retinal detachment and total loss of vision.
Nearsighted people (Myopia) have a much higher chance of experiencing vitreous detachments due to their often-elongated eye shape.
Other causes of floaters may be blood inside the eye and can signify escalation of diabetic eye complications. Some migraines may cause transient floaters and flashes.
There is a new treatment for annoying floaters, particularly those in the line of vision. Eye Surgeons Bendigo has recently acquired a special laser to eliminate floaters. This is done in the clinic with no special anaesthetic or reparation. It is painless, very effective and may attract a medicare rebate.
Eye Surgeons Bendigo are trusted and respected experts in the delivery of high quality eye care.