Eye Floaters

[Deely]

What causes the floaters in the eyes?

[admarlow]

Whats left of a vein that when you was in the womb brought blood to your developing eye.

[britannia74]

Hello,
Just type flashes and floaters into google, i've had both for a year now and you just learn to live with them however, they are caused by the jelly at the back of your eye pulling on the retinas the brain interprets this as 'flashes and floaters' very common in short sighted people.

[Clanad]

To flesh out admarlow's answer:
For most people, floaters occur as they grow older. The vitreous humor thickens and clumps as we age, and floaters result from the clumped vitreous gel. Sometimes pregnant women see spots caused by little bits of protein trapped within the eye. Eye injury or breakdown of the vitreous humor may also cause spots and floaters.

When people reach middle age, the vitreous gel may start to thicken or shrink, forming clumps or strands inside the eye. The vitreous gel pulls away from the back wall of the eye, causing a posterior vitreous detachment. It is a common cause of floaters in people who are nearsighted, have experienced cataract surgery, or have had a severe inflammation of the eye.
As previously mentioned, they can also occur due to embryonic cells continuing to grow as we age, finally reaching a size that they or associated shadows can actually be sensed.
(Thanks to All About Vision)

[kwicky]

As britannia above says you can get flashes or floaters. Floaters are not really a problem but the doctor will worry if you have flashes. They are just like a camera click when you turn your head in the dark and you see a flash of light and which can lead to retinal detachment.

[Calvados]

I've had floaters for years. They're a nuisance for sure but you get used to it. I'm long sighted, BTW. I was told back then that there was nothing that could be done about them. If you've got them, you're stuck with them!

[britannia74]

Hello,
You do get used to them, at first I thought I was going to go crazy!! The flashes were worse then the floaters but again i've just acccepted them , the consultant I went to see said the floaters eventually break down to a certain extent and become less visable. and the flashes will eventually disappear but i'm still waiting for that after a year of having them! thankfully I didn't have detached retinas.