Age: As you get older, the vitreous humor inside your eye shrinks, clumps, and gets stringy.About half of people who have a retinal tear will eventually develop retinal detachment if the problem is not treated.Įye floaters can be caused by several conditions. This necessitates immediate attention to avoid vision loss.Īmong people who suddenly developed eye floaters, 39.7 percent had posterior vitreous detachment, and 8.9 percent had a torn retina, requiring immediate medical attention. The symptoms listed above indicate a tear in your retina, which may be due to retinal detachment, shrinking of the vitreous humor, or other causes. Are accompanied by darkness or shadowing on the sides of your vision (peripheral vision loss).Multiply a lot very quickly, when you had only one or two before.Suddenly appear when you did not have them before.However, you should see a doctor if eye floaters: These are normal, especially if you are middle-aged or older. Shapes that move around if your eyes move a lot but eventually settle and move out of your line of vision.Spots that are noticeable on a plain or bright background, like a white wall or the sky.Small shapes that look like circles or lines in your vision but that you cannot look at directly.This can help your optometrist or ophthalmologist to manage your eye health by monitoring for specific conditions. Report them during your regular eye exam. If you develop eye floaters, this is not necessarily a problem. The internal changes can lead to some eye floaters, with more developing as the vitreous humor pulls away from the retina. The inside will become more liquid, and sometimes this is not thick enough to support the heavier gel on the outside. With higher order myopia (nearsightedness), aging, some medications, chronic illnesses, and surgical procedures, the vitreous humor will change. In a normal, younger eye, the vitreous humor has a gel-like texture. To understand eye floaters, it can help to understand the structure of the eye. Keep your optometrist or ophthalmologist informed about eye floaters, especially if you suddenly see a lot of them or their appearance is accompanied by light flashes, pain or discomfort, or nausea and headaches. When they move in front of your retina, they block light so you can see them move back and forth.Įye floaters are associated with the shrinking of the vitreous humor as you age, but they can also indicate potential problems with your eye health. It may seem like these shapes are in front of you, but they are actually inside your eye, as they are particles in the vitreous humor that makes up the bulk of your eye. You may not be able to look at them directly, but as you move your eyes, they will shift or drift back and forth. These are spots, rings, or web-like lines that are grayish, black, or shadowlike shapes in your vision. They are typically benign and associated with age-related changes, but they can also indicate potential eye health problems like a rise in the fluid pressure in your eye. What Are Eye Floaters?Įye floaters are spots in your vision that track as your eyes move. Ultimately, keep track of your eye floaters to help your eye doctor manage the health of your eyes. Serious eye floaters may require a vitrectomy (removal and replacement of the vitreous humor) or laser treatment.

They may recommend lifestyle changes for these mild cases. Mild cases of eye floaters are not treated, although your eye doctor will monitor them during your regular checkups. These changes can lead to exposure or tearing of your retina, which can cause a rapid increase in floaters that indicates a health emergency. Eye floaters are caused by changes in the vitreous humor, which is the gel-like substance that helps your eye maintain its shape.

Black floating spots before my eyes