Floaters and Spots
What are Floaters and Spots?
In most of the cases, floaters and spots really are harmless.
Believe it or not, as is the case for most individuals, floaters
and spots exist all throughout life. For some, the appearance
of these tiny flecks may be a nuisance, but overall, they
are simply a fact of life.
What is known is, the floaters and spots are particles of
protein that break apart and float around the clear, gel-like
fluid within the eyes. Because they break apart, no two floaters
or spots are like in shape or size. They can have ragged edges,
they can appear as tiny threads or cobwebs, they can appear
as black or white flecks, and they sometimes appear as flashes
of light.
As we have talked about it, floaters and spots are present
however they seem to be more obvious when a person looks at
a brightly-colored background such as a wall or the sky, or
an image that does not have a pattern.
People 'see' floaters and spots because the gel-like substances
create shadows on the retina. Usually, we are not able to
focus on floaters and spots because they move around in sync
with the eye's movements.
Symptoms of Floaters and Spots
Since floaters and spots always exist but only sometimes
visible, and because they are not considered a disease or
even an eye problem, generally there are not any 'symptoms'
related to their presence. The only symptoms of floaters and
spots are the minute obstructions they cause to a person's
vision.
Generally, all floaters and spots are harmless. Most people
have them and for most people, their presence is not a sign
of a more serious situation. So every person could be considered
'at risk'.
Treatment
Routine eye examinations are usually the best way to decide
whether floaters and spots are harmless or whether their presence
is a sign of a more serious problem within the eyes. Good
news is, the instances in which floaters and spots are being
caused by an underlying eye condition are very rare.
| 
