Description
This article is from the Vision and Eye
Care FAQ, by grants@research.canon.com.au (Grant Sayer) with
numerous contributions by others.
5.1 Floaters and Spots in the Field of View
Floaters (muscae volitantes - "flying flies") are spots before the eyes of
different shapes, sizes and number. They appear often when looking at a
plain coloured field of view, eg blue sky, a wall. Typically when the patient
tries to look at them they report that the spots "run- away". The spots are
due to corpuscles circulating in the retinal vessels and specks within the
vitreous. These opacities cause shadows to be cast onto the retinal
sensory apparatus; the rods and cones; and thereby appear as dark spots in
the field of vision. Slight cases or observations require no treatment.
There are other retinal and vitreous conditions that may cause increased
presence of floaters indicative of more serious complications, for example,
vitreous or retinal detachment. It is therefore advisable in the presence
of an increased occurrence of floaters that you get a check-up by a
eyecare professional.
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