What are floaters?
Floaters are clumps of cells floating around inside the eye that are caused by normal age-related processes. Learn more from Dr. Marian Macsai on behalf of NorthShore University HealthSystem about floaters.
Transcript
When you're a child, that vitreous is very firm. It's almost like jello, in that you could cut it with a knife.
[LIGHT ROCK]
So what are floaters? Inside your eye, there's a lens.
And behind the lens, between the retina and the lens, there is a substance that we call the vitreous humor.
When you're a child, that vitreous is very firm. It's almost like jello, in that you could cut it with a knife.
And as you age, there's a normal process that takes place, where the thick, hard vitreous turns
into a liquid. And as it liquefies, the cells in the vitreous
tend to clump together and float around inside your eye. So what patients see when they're talking about a floater
is usually clumps of cells floating around inside the eye that are a normal age-related process.
eye health
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