Eye Floaters

If you see small specks or perhaps pieces of debris drifting in your vision, these are eye floaters. They are usually harmless. They would be seen most easily while looking at something plain like a white divider or clear sky.

Eye floaters are actually clumps of gel-like cells inside the vitreous – the clear, jelly like liquid that fills the inside of your eye. Floaters look like webs, specks, strands, and different shapes. What you are seeing are in reality the shadows of floaters cast on the retina, the light-sensitive internal covering of the back of the eye.

With a special instrument, your eye doctor will recognize floaters in your eyes regardless of the possibility that you don’t see them yourself. If a shadowy shape or spot passes in your field of vision or close to the side, you are seeing an eye floater. Because they are inside your eye and suspended inside the gel-vitreous, they move with your eyes as you scan and attempt to see them.

During middle age, the gel-vitreous begins to melt and contract. Some parts of the vitreous shape clumps or strands inside the eye. The vitreous pulls far from the back eye-divider causing a posterior vitreous detachment (PVD). PVD is a typical cause of floaters.

The sudden appearance of a significant numbers of eye floaters, especially if joined by flashes of light or other vision disturbances, could show a retinal separation or different serious issue in the eye. In the event that you suddenly see floaters, contact your RI optometrist right away.