Summer is almost over, and I always feel like there are insects flying in front of my eyes. What's going on? !

Summer is almost over

Sometimes I don't hear the mosquitoes.

Why do I still feel something flying around in front of my eyes? Be careful, you may have "floaters"

01What are floaters?

Yan Jing, chief physician, member of the Basic and Metrology Safety Protection Group of the 9th Committee of the Laser Medicine Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, deputy leader of the Fundus Disease Group of the Hubei Province of the Aier Eye Hospital Group, and deputy director of the Fundus Disease Department of the Aier Eye Hospital Affiliated to Wuhan University (Wuhan Aier Eye Hospital General Hospital), said: Floaters are a common eye disease, and the symptoms of "floating mosquitoes" appear in front of the eyes, so it is called "floaters". It is more obvious outdoors in the sun or when looking at a bright white background, and may also be accompanied by a sense of flashing.

Floaters are mainly caused by the aging of the vitreous body, which is the main support of the human eyeball and looks like "jelly". As we age, the vitreous body will liquefy (gradually change from gel to liquid) and produce some turbidity. The "floaters" in front of our eyes are actually the turbidity in the vitreous body of the eyes.

02Are all floaters “malignant”?

If the patient has floaters in both eyes and it is not certain which eye has floaters, but after a period of time, the floaters do not get worse or change, and the position of the floaters is fixed, it is mostly benign. However, if the floaters occur suddenly and are limited to one eye, and the floating black shadows are in an uncertain direction, or the black shadows cover the field of vision, and the vision becomes worse, this must be paid attention to. If the floaters phenomenon becomes increasingly severe in a short period of time, especially accompanied by obvious flashes or visual field defects, you should go to the hospital for a detailed fundus examination, supplemented by eye B-ultrasound examination if necessary. After the examination, if the floaters phenomenon is caused by a disease, then treatment should be targeted at the disease. However, a normal result of one examination does not mean that there will be no problems in the future. Once there are flashes, a sudden increase in floaters, etc., you need to go to the hospital for another examination.

03What should I do if I suffer from floaters?

There are two types of floaters: physiological and pathological. Whether treatment is needed depends on the specific situation.

1. Physiological floaters

When normal people look at white objects or the blue sky, they may find floating small dots or filaments in front of their eyes. Sometimes they can be seen with their eyes closed, but no vitreous lesions are found during examination. This is called physiological floaters. It is usually caused by the projection of cells in the vitreous cortex or blood cells in the retinal blood vessels on the retina.

The main symptom is that the position of the "mosquitoes" is relatively fixed, generally only appearing as floating black shadows, and does not affect vision. Physiological floaters do not require treatment, as long as you have a regular work and rest schedule, use your eyes scientifically, and pay attention to rest, you will get better.

2. Pathological floaters

Pathological floaters are eye diseases, mainly caused by lesions of tissues adjacent to the vitreous, such as uveitis, retinitis or eye trauma bleeding.

The main symptoms are a large increase in the number of "mosquitoes" in a short period of time, visual distortion, and even flashes, redness, pain, abnormal vision, etc. Pathological floaters can be treated with drugs according to the cause. If vitreous hemorrhage, retinal tear or detachment occurs, surgical treatment is required.