Why do I see (a) black squiggly line(s) when I look around with my right eye?!


Question:

Why do I see (a) black squiggly line(s) when I look around with my right eye?

Every time I move my eye, I see this thing. I try to center it, but it moves with my eye. Is there something "stuck" in my eye that I can get out? Sometimes, I will see more than one, usually in a bright area, such as when it snows and I am outside. Does anyone know what this is? I have been seeing this since 9th grade. I am in 12th now.


Answers:

You are noticing vitreous floaters. The vitreous is the gel that fills the posterior 2/3 or so of your eyeball. It varies from person to person but most people normally have some amount of cellular debri that is suspended within the vitreous. As light enters your eye it passes through the vitreous until it reaches the retina. If you happen to have debri suspended in just the right place, this debri will cast a shadow on the retina which you see as a "squiggly black line". When you move your eye in an attempt to center the shadow, the gel in the eye will lag for just a moment and then will rotate along with the rotation of the eye. This returns the debri more or less to it's original position. That is why the shadow seems to run away from you as you attempt to move your eye to look at it. Frustrating? Yes. But it is seldom an indication of any dangerous eye disease.

Rarely, though, this debri can be deposited in the vitreous due to a tear or detachment of the retina. Should this be the case, surgical intervention is needed. The fact that your floaters appear to be long standing and not really changing over time leads me to believe that you have regular old vitreous floaters that are more a frustration than any real problem. To know for sure, though, a dilated exam of the eye is necessary. So to set your mind at ease why don't you take the time to go in and let an optometric physician look at you. Hope this helped.




The consumer health information on answer-health.com is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions.
The answer content post by the user, if contains the copyright content please contact us, we will immediately remove it.
Copyright © 2007-2011 answer-health.com -   Terms of Use -   Contact us

Health Categories