You should have in mind that eye floaters are small spots that will appear and drift throughout the field of vision that you have. They tend to stand out when you start seeing something bright such as the blue sky or white paper.
The main problem is that this situation can annoy you, but it is not problematic, and it should not interfere with your sight. However, in some cases, when you have large floaters, that will cause issues to your vision in general.
However, this tends to happen when you start looking at specific types of light. You will be able to live with floaters and ignore them because it is a natural thing for them to appear, and they will not affect your daily situations.
However, in rare cases, you have to find an eye doctor near me so that you can get the appropriate treatment that will help you.
Symptoms of Eye Floaters You Should Know
Floaters are by definition particles that are moving around in your eye, and they tend to appear only when you focus entirely on them and when you start watching the bright screen or wall.
They can come in numerous shapes such as:
- Squiggly lines
- Gray or black dots
- Cobwebs
- Rings
- Threadlike strands
When they start appearing, you will focus on them, and that will make them look more and more. However, when you start doing something else and focus on other things, such as your working, they will reduce and get away.
What Is Causing Them?
Floaters are a combination of protein that we know as collagen. We are talking about a gel-like substance that you feature at the back of your eye or the place we know as vitreous. As time goes by and you are aging, the protein fibers tend to shrink down, and that creates a clump.
Therefore, the shadows you will see apart from your vision on the retina are floaters. So when you see a flash, it is becoming the vitreous got away from the retina, which is something that may affect you currently.
In case those floaters are dramatically changing the way you see or are new, you should visit an eye doctor so that you can learn how to ignore them or get into some treatment if they are chronic and persistent.
Have in mind that aging can cause these issues, but it may happen to everyone. It is most likely to happen to people between 50 and 75 years old, especially if you had cataract surgery or if you are nearsighted.
At the same time, floaters can be a symptom of some conditions such as:
- Diabetic retinopathy
- Eye injury
- Eye disease
- Eye tumors
- Crystal deposits in the vitreous
- Torn retina
- Detached retina
- Bleeding in vitreous
Sometimes, you may think that you have seen something similar to a floater, but that tends to happen as the initial sign of migraine headache. It is essential to check with your doctor so that he/she can put your eye to a kaleidoscope.
It is different from flashbulb types of floaters, and it comes as part of other eye issues as well. A migraine headache tends to create a visual aura that you may experience, it tends to last a few minutes, and you will see them with both eyes.
It is a sign that you will have another episode, so prepare yourself thoroughly. Learn more on floaters, by checking out this site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floater.
When Should You See An Eye Doctor?
In case that you notice a few of them in some timeframe, you can rest assured because it is entirely reasonable to see them when you are tired or after a long day of working next to a digital screen.
However, if you notice an increase of several floaters, sudden flashes of light, changes that are getting worse as time goes by, you should find someone to determine what is going on with you.
In case you need medical treatment, the doctor will not treat them but the cause that leads to seeing them. However, if the problem happens and you do not have issues with the eyes, you should learn how to avoid them by yourself.
In case that they annoy you, we recommend you to get them out of your field of vision, by moving your eyes, which will shift the fluid around and looking up and down which will work better than going side to side.
