You have previously experienced retinal detachment, have had recent eye injury or eye surgery, have other eye conditions affecting the retina, or you have very high short-sightedness (myopia).They are associated with other eye symptoms such as pain, severe headaches, changes in your vision, grey shadows in your vision or with new onset of eye flashes.However, you should see your doctor or optician, or visit the A&E department, if any of the following apply: Are eye floaters dangerous?įloaters are usually not serious. Less common causes of floaters include inflammation of the eye ( posterior uveitis) and, more rarely still, tumours affecting the eye. Retinal tears and retinal detachments also cause floaters, and these will vary with severity, depending on the severity of the damage. For more information on this condition see the separate leaflet called Vitreous Haemorrhage.įloaters will result from any internal damage to the back of the eye. If the bleeding is major then vision may be affected. However, in this case the floaters represent blood in the jelly. Again, there should be no loss of vision and most cases settle without causing any problems.īleeding into the vitreous humour (vitreous haemorrhage) will also lead to the formation of floaters. In this case there will be a sudden obvious increase in the number of floaters. They are more common in those who are short-sighted, those who have had eye surgery and those who have diabetic eye disease.įloaters can also occur after posterior vitreous detachment. After a while you will find them less noticeable. They also tend to 'settle' at the bottom of the eye, below the line of sight. These kinds of floater are not associated with eye flashes or reduction in your vision and they tend to come on gradually. Most commonly this is due to normal ageing of the eye, when opacities form in the clear jelly and drift around. Most floaters are also caused by changes in the vitreous humour. They tend to be more obvious when bright objects, such as a blue sky, are being viewed. They drift about inside the eye rather than staying still.
They move as you move your eye and can seem to dart away when you try to look at them. They may look like spots, threads, spiders or cobwebs.
People who are extremely short-sighted (correction more than -6.00D - your optician can tell you what your correction is) are at higher risk, as the globe of their eye tends to be longer so that the vitreous is more likely to pull away.įloaters are shapes (opacities) floating in the field of vision. Some people are at greater risk of retinal detachment than others, including those who have already had a retinal detachment in the other eye, those with inflammatory eye disorders such as uveitis, or degenerative conditions of the retina, those who have had significant eye trauma or surgery, and those with a family history of retinal detachment. Retinal detachment can lead to permanent vision loss. Flashes accompanied by a shadow coming down over your vision is suggestive of retinal detachment.įor further detail see the separate leaflet called Retinal Detachment. Increasing, persistent or constant flashes all suggest strong pulling on the retina and may mean that you are at risk of retinal damage.
Occasionally flashes can be a sign that the retina is at risk of being torn or detached. Most eye flashes are caused by changes in the vitreous humour which are related to age and which are harmless. Patients may sometimes see flashes, although more frequently they see complex visual images like children or animals, which can look very real. The brain, deprived of real visual information, can make things up instead, particularly in conditions of low light. Charles Bonnet syndrome is a condition experienced by people, usually elderly people, whose vision is deteriorating.
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