Eye Floaters are usually a symptom indicating the start of a Posterior Vitreous Detachment or PVD.
Posterior vitreous detachment dramatically increases the risk of a retinal tear or retinal detachment.
If you are experiencing new eye floaters or eye flashes, it is likely that you have posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) which is a common eye problem associated with aging. Posterior vitreous detachment is one of the risk factors for retinal detachment. It is seen as a natural change and usually occurs in adulthood; when the vitreous gel, which fills the eyes, separates from the retina. This happens after the vitreous gel starts shrinking and becoming more liquid. The retina is the light-sensitive nerve layer that is located at the back of your eyes which helps you focus on images as you look at them. When the vitreous gel detaches from it, it leads to certain complications with your sight and immediate onset or worsening of eye floaters. Sometimes the complications can be severe or they may be subtle. Usually, PVD presents with frustrating and disturbing symptoms, but it often doesn’t cause you pain or harm your eyes. It also rarely causes permanent loss of sight – but it can!
What are the warning signs of a posterior vitreous detachment?
A PVD presents with few symptoms, which usually gets better or gets less intense over a few weeks. Here are a few of the symptoms.
- Experience of eye floaters- Floaters, in this case, are seemly moving, blurry visions that can obscure one’s vision. It is normal to have mild floaters in one’s vision. However, an abrupt increase in floaters is usually the first symptom of a PVD.
- The occurrence of eye flashes- This presents as streaks of light often by the side of the vision. They usually cause more trouble for an individual when they occur near the center of vision but less bothersome when located by the side of the vision. They could look like dust, bubbles, cobwebs or even swarm of tiny insects. In some cases, they could be seen as oval-shaped or a circle (known as a Weiss ring).
Most of the time, patients experience both symptoms during the first few days of the PVD, while in some cases; the symptoms are not even noticeable. It usually occurs as one gets to 55 years old and above in the two eyes and usually doesn’t pose a threat to sight unless of course it is accompanied by complications such as eye flashing, eye wrinkle, macular hole, vitreous hemorrhage, retinal tear, or retinal detachment.
What causes eye floaters?
Your vitreous gel contains mostly water, and its anatomical location is right up against your retina (at the back of your eye), just close to your optic nerve, (the cranial nerve that supplies the eye). Tiny connections keep this gel fixed to your retina.With time and as you age, the vitreous gel becomes liquefied and shrinks. Normal wear and tear is also a factor that contributes to this. This will lead to a case whereby the gel cannot fill up the whole volume of the eye’s vitreous cavity (the size of this cavity doesn’t change during adulthood). Thus, the gel tends to detach from the retina. Within a span of a few weeks to months, the vitreous gel can condense further leading to continuous detachment of the sides of the gel from the retina until the PVD becomes complete, i.e. the vitreous gel becomes attached to the retina only at its base. Another explanation of the cause of PVD is that as you age, little pockets of liquid can form inside the vitreous gel. The tiny fibers that attach it to the retina can break, thus causing it to pull away from the retina and optic nerve. This can result in formation of a macular hole, retinal tear, or retinal detachment.
What are the risk factors for PVD or eye floaters?
Just like its name sounds, retinal detachment or tear is an eye disorder in which the retina separates from the eyewall (its normal position is in the back of the eye). It usually presents with symptoms such as lightning flashes in your eye, eye floaters, and a “shade or curtain” in the peripheral visual field. A retinal tear or tears occur before the retinal detachment.
Posterior vitreous detachment is the #1 risk factor for developing a retinal detachment. But, asides this, there are some other factors that can predispose or increase one’s chances of having a retinal detachment.
- Trauma or other injury to the eye
- Family history of retinal detachment or retinal tear
- Inflammation of the eye
- Previous surgery to the eyes
- The occurrence of retinal detachment in the other eye
- Near-sightedness or myopia
- The thinness of the retinal tissue that is inherited
- Diabetic retinopathy
- The previous occurrence of cataract, glaucoma or other eye conditions
- Weak areas in the retina such as lattice degeneration
- Smoking and passive smoking
- Floaters at a young age
What are the types of retinal detachment?
- Exudative retinal detachment- This usually occurs as a result of inflammation which results in fluid accumulation below the retina. In this case, there is usually no tear, hole or break. It can also be caused by the growth of tumor under the retina.
- Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment- It results from retinal break or tear, which permits the flow of fluid from the vitreous space into the sub-retinal space.
- Tractional retinal detachments- it occurs when the retina detaches from the retinal pigment epithelium by a pulling mechanism. This is a common reason for vision loss in diabetic patients.
What should I do if I am having eye floaters?
Usually, when retinal detachment or PVD occurs, blurring of vision is inevitable. The major complication that arises from retinal detachment is loss of vision. When untreated, a detached retina could lead to permanent loss of sight. In many cases, vision can be saved or restored with early intervention.
Treatment options for retinal detachments and retina tears include surgery. While retinal detachment surgeries are usually successful, sometimes, they come with risks such as bleeding, the build-up of pressure in the eye, infection or even cataract. However, surgeries could still be a better option because if untreated, the retinal detachment will eventually lead to blindness in most cases.
Check-in with the best eye clinic to get your eye checked at intervals. If you have an elderly loved one, or you are at risk of developing PVD or retinal detachments, our services are for you. These conditions are best treated when detected early. Our mission is to restore your sight to its excellent working state with our professional touch. Click here to schedule a visit with the best retina specialist and have your eye and sight checked out.