What does it mean to sometimes see little white lights floating in front of my eyes?

Question:

It happens atleast once a day, sometimes twice and last for about 30 seconds. There's no pain, dizzyness or anything else associated with it, just the white lights. They're really tiny and bright

Answers:
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Friday October 06th 2006 - 02:42 PM

Floaters and flashing lights (obstructions to vision)
Floaters
Flashing Lights
Floaters
What are floaters?
Floaters are dark specks in the form of dots, circles, lines or cobwebs that appear to move across the field of vision. They are particularly noticeable when one is looking at a light-coloured background such as a clear sky or a white wall. Floaters come in many sizes and numbers, and they appear to move when the eye looks in different directions.

What Causes Floaters?
The inside of the eye is filled with a clear, gel-like substance called the vitreous. The vitreous helps maintain the shape of the eye and allows light to pass through to the retina. The retina is a thin, light-sensitive tissue that covers the inside back portion of the eye and works like the film in a camera. Floaters are small clumps of gel that form in the vitreous. Although they appear to be in front of the eye, they are actually floating in the vitreous and are seen as shadows by the retina.

The appearance of floaters may cause concern, especially if they develop suddenly. However, they are usually of little importance. As people get older, the vitreous shrinks and often separates from the retina. By the age of 50 years the vitreous has separated from the retina in about 50% of all people. As the vitreous detaches, it causes floaters. At first the floaters may be quite annoying, but the brain gradually learns to ignore them, and after several months they are hardly noticed.

Normal Eye

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Should You Be Concerned?
Most of the time the vitreous separates from the retina without causing any problems. In some people there are adhesions between the retina and the vitreous, and tears in the retina may occur as the vitreous detaches. This may cause a small amount of bleeding inside the eye, which may appear as a group of new floaters. Retinal tears should be repaired immediately. This procedure can usually be done on an outpatient basis, without the need for admission to hospital. A tear in the retina can develop into a retinal detachment, a serious problem that requires a major operation to repair. Certain people, such as near-sighted people and those who have had a cataract operation or suffered an injury to the eye, are prone to retinal tears.

Occasionally, floaters result from inflammation within the eye or from crystal-like deposits that form in the vitreous.

Without examination by an ophthalmologist - a physician who specializes in care of the eye-there is no way for a person to determine whether floaters are serious. Any sudden onset of many new floaters or flashes of light should be evaluated by an ophthalmologist.

What Can Be Done About Floaters?
Floaters may sometimes interfere with clear vision, often when one is reading. If a floater appears directly in your line of vision, moving your eye around will cause the vitreous to swirl around and will move the floater out of the way. Looking up and down rather than back and forth will cause different currents inside the eye and may be more effective in getting the floater out of the way.

Retinal Detachment

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Flashing Lights
What are Flashing Lights?
Flashing lights are the sensation of lights going on and off, noticed particularly off to one side. They tend to occur in only one eye at a time and persist even when the eye is closed.

Vitreous Detachment

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What Causes Flashing Lights?
The vitreous, a clear gel-like substance that fills the inside of the eye, sometimes pulls or tugs on the retina. This pulling causes the appearance of flashing lights or lightning streaks, though there is no flashing light actually present. This same sensation sometimes occurs when one is hit in the eye and sees "stars".

When the vitreous separates from the retina, flashing lights may appear periodically for a few weeks. This commonly happens as people grow older and usually is not cause for alarm.

Flashes of light that appear as jagged lines, last 10 to 20 minutes and are present in both eyes are likely migraine-caused by a spasm of blood vessels in the brain. If a headache follows, it is called a migraine headache. If there is no subsequent headache, the light flashes are referred to as ophthalmic migraine, or migraine without headache.

Should You Be Concerned?
Most of the time the vitreous separates from the retina without causing any problems. Occasionally, flashing lights are associated with many new floaters and even a blacking out of part of the field of vision. If this occurs, immediate examination by an ophthalmologist is important to determine whether a retinal tear or retinal detachment has developed. Retinal tears require treatment to prevent the retina from detaching. retinal detachment is a serious problem that must be repaired surgically.

Summary
Floaters and flashing lights usually do not indicate any serious eye problem. If a large number develop or if they seem to be much worse over a period of time, an examination by an ophthalmologist is recommended. The examination involves careful observation of the retina and vitreous. Medical training and experience are required to perform

Maybe your tired or physco Go to the doctors!

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What does it mean to sometimes see little white lights floating in front of my eyes?

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