This sometimes means that the central, more watery vitreous cannot support the weight of the heavier, more peripheral vitreous gel. Over time, the vitreous becomes more liquefied in the center. Far less commonly, these symptoms can be associated with retinal tears or detachments that may be linked to PVDs.Īs the eye develops early in life, the vitreous gel fills the inside of the back of the eye and presses against the retina and attaches to the surface of the retina. What causes vitreous detachment?Īs mentioned above, posterior vitreous detachments (PVDs) are common causes of vitreous floaters. In cases of retinal tear or detachment, treatment must occur as soon as possible so that an eye surgeon can reattach the retina and restore visual function before sight is lost permanently.Ī study of 350 patients with PVD published in the journal Ophthalmology found that, of 163 patients who came to the clinic because of symptoms of just one or two floaters (with or without light flashes), a retinal tear developed in 12 of them (7.3%).īased on this finding, if you suddenly develop large floaters, even if you don’t experience flashes of light, it’s a good idea to see your eye doctor immediately to make sure the floaters are no cause for concern. When the retina is torn, vitreous can enter the opening and push the retina farther away from the inner lining of the back of the eye, and a retinal detachment can result. The sudden appearance of these symptoms can mean that the vitreous is pulling away from your retina, a condition called posterior vitreous detachment (PVD), or it could mean that the retina itself is becoming dislodged from the back of the eye's inner lining, which contains blood, nutrients and oxygen vital to healthy function.Īs the vitreous gel tugs on the delicate retina, it might cause a small tear or hole in it. However, if you see a shower of floaters and spots, especially if they are accompanied by flashes of light, you should seek medical attention immediately from an eye care professional. Noticing a few floaters from time to time is not a cause for concern. When are eye floaters a medical emergency? When you move your eye to try and see better, the floater moves in the same direction and floats back into your peripheral vision and out of view. Once you start seeing floaters, it can be hard to ignore them, especially if you are stressed or fatigued.īecause the clumps of collagen that cause floaters are often suspended in the periphery of the vitreous, it can be impossible to look directly at them. They often appear in your peripheral vision, which makes it easy to mistake a floater for an insect flying in front of your face.Īnother time people notice floaters is when they’re staring at a computer screen that has a white or light-colored background. You’re most likely to notice vitreous floaters when you gaze at a clear or overcast sky. These are what cause those squiggly lines in your vision. When this occurs, bits of collagen in the vitreous can clump together and form lint-like structures. As we age, the vitreous part becomes less like a gel and more watery. The vitreous body is mostly water, but it also contains a protein called collagen. When they float close to the light-sensitive retina in the back of the eye, they cast shadows on the retina, and these shadows are what we perceive as eye floaters. Eye floaters are caused by irregularly shaped clumps of collagen that float around in the liquefied vitreous body, and can affect light passing through the eye.

Screentime for flash process