What are flashes and floaters?

The sudden appearance of black specks or particles in your vision, usually in one eye, sometimes associated with light flashes, is a symptom that should not be ignored and needs urgent examination. It is important to rule out a retinal tear or hemorrhage inside the eye. These floaters imply a shift in the vitreous gel inside your eye. This can be a normal change as the gel ages and becomes more liquid. Sometimes it can be caused by a sudden blow to your head. The vitreous gel is attached to the retina in many places and a sudden change in the vitreous may cause the retina to tear. Without treatment, a sudden retina tear may lead to a retinal detachment. Although most times the vitreous will break away from the retina without a retinal tear, you cannot know for sure without an examination. For this reason, we usually fit patients into our schedule within 24 hours of your call to the office, usually the same day.