Most of us have seen flashes and floaters in our field of vision at one time or another. Most of the time the floaters and flashes are harmless signs of aging eyes. However, sometimes that indicate a serious eye problem that needs urgent treatment.

Flashes look like lightning streaks at night with or without your eyes open. Flashes can come and go and often occur in one eye at a time. Flashes are caused by the collapse of the fluid inside of your eye due to the normal aging process. This collapse of fluid can tear the retina leading to a detached retina. Retinal tears are ususally treated with laser surgery, however detached retinas are much more serious and require hospital surgery. Any patient with a sudden onset of flashes and floaters should be examinated quickly with the use of a dilated eye examination.