Almost everyone has experienced floaters, those tiny specks or shadows that flit across your field of vision: You try to focus on one, and — poof! — it slips away, just out of your central focus.
While they may be annoying (and perhaps a source of curiosity), floaters typically are nothing to worry about. But there are times when floaters can be a sign of a more serious problem, and knowing what to look for is important for getting care that can help prevent complications like vision loss.
The team at Long Island Ophthalmic Concepts evaluates floaters during regular eye exams to look for unusual changes that could indicate a developing vision issue, so you can feel confident your vision will be protected. Here, learn why floaters happen and what unusual changes should be checked immediately by our team.
Squiggling around your field of vision, floaters might look like some sort of germ you’d spy under a microscope. The good news is, they’re not germs at all but rather tiny clumps of collagen, a protein found in the central gel part of your eye called the vitreous.
Floaters are most visible when you stare at a brightly-lit background, like the sky or another bright light. That’s because when light enters your eye, the tiny floaters create shadows on your retina, the light-sensitive back “wall” of your eye. Those shadows are what we’re actually seeing when we notice floaters.
One of the interesting (or perhaps annoying) characteristics of floaters is what appears to be their movement when we try to focus on them. That movement happens because the collagen clumps are suspended in a gel substance that’s somewhat fluid, enabling them to float freely, creating the sensation that the floaters are moving on their own.
Floaters are much more common as we age and the vitreous starts to thin out. A gradual increase in floaters as you age is typically nothing to worry about (although we’ll still evaluate them during your exam). But if you notice a rapid increase in floaters, it could be a sign of an underlying medical problem.
Eye infections are one possible cause of floater increase, and so is inflammation inside your eye. In these instances, you may notice a lot more floaters in one eye than the other, but increases can also affect both eyes. You can also have an increase in floaters after an eye injury or surgery. Diabetes and extreme myopia are associated with higher numbers of floaters, too.
Large numbers of floaters or a rapid increase in the number of floaters can also be a sign of retinal detachment. This serious, vision-threatening condition happens when the retina starts to separate from the back wall of your eye. Often, floaters are accompanied by other symptoms, like bright flashes of light or the sensation of a curtain descending over your field of vision. Retinal detachment is an emergency condition that can cause permanent blindness without immediate treatment.
Pardon the pun, but keeping an eye on your floaters is important for identifying eye problems early. If you have an unusual number of floaters or if it’s time to schedule your next exam, request an appointment online or over the phone with the team at Long Island Ophthalmic Concepts in Bellmore and Great Neck, New York, today.
