This week Bobbi Conner talks with Dr. Jeffrey Blice about the symptoms, causes and diagnosis of eye floaters. Dr. Blice is a Professor of Ophthalmology and he’s an ophthalmologist at MUSC Storm Eye Institute, specializing in diseases of the retina.
TRANSCRIPT:
Conner: I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio with Health Focus here at the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Almost everyone develops an eye condition called floaters sometime in the older adult years. Doctor Jeffrey Blice is here to talk about this eye condition and how to rule out other, more serious eye concerns. Doctor Blice is a Professor of Ophthalmology, and he's an ophthalmologist who specializes in diseases of the retina at Storm Eye Institute at MUSC. Doctor Blice, tell us about floaters.
Dr. Blice: So, Bobbi floaters are small spots or shapes that appear in your field of vision. Often, they look like black or gray specks, strings, or even like a cobweb. Some people describe them even as a flying insect. And there are a number of reasons that you can have floaters. They can be caused by something as simple as debris in the tear film, or normal changes in the gelatinous material inside the eye as you age. The good news overall is that although these floaters are potentially annoying, they don't represent serious disease. However, certain floaters can be an indication of serious eye disease.
Conner: Well, what specific symptoms require urgent medical attention by an ophthalmologist or optometrist to rule out the more serious problems?
Dr. Blice: So, in patients who have never had a floater and then suddenly get a cobweb like floater in one eye, that really is something that should be discussed with their eye doctor in association with that floater. If people get flashes of light similar to a camera flash or large black chunks of floating material that they have difficulty seeing through, and most importantly, an unmistakable gray or black shadow covering their visual field, those people really should be seen by an ophthalmologist or optometrist. These more concerning symptoms could represent the development of a retinal tear, or even a retinal detachment that needs a more urgent evaluation and may even need surgery.
Conner: And when might people begin getting floaters.
Dr. Blice: Even in healthy eyes, normal changes can occur in the gel inside the eye, beginning around the age of 60, that can cause a cobweb like floater. So about 90% of these people don't have a serious problem. And although initially annoyed by their floater, they learn to ignore it.
Conner: And if they do get a floater just in one eye, might they assume they're going to get a floater in the other eye also at some point in time, or not necessarily.
Dr. Blice: So, the process that occurs in one eye when someone gets a floater is likely to occur in the other eye. Whether or not the patient gets the symptoms is variable. Some people do get the symptom of a floater in both eyes. But I've had patients who have only recognized they have a floater in one eye, even though the same process has occurred in the other.
Conner: And the routine types of floaters that are not a serious concern, do they ever go away? You mentioned people sort of ignore them. What's the scenario there?
Dr. Blice: So, the floater never physically goes away. And although your brain learns to ignore them, most of the time people can find them if they try to look for them.
Conner: Doctor Blice, thanks for this information about floaters.
Dr. Blice: You're very welcome.
Conner: Bobbi from the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio.
Health Focus transcripts are intended to accurately represent the original audio version of the program; however, some discrepancies or inaccuracies may exist. The audio format serves as the official record of Health Focus programming.
