{"id":9924,"date":"2021-02-14T09:59:07","date_gmt":"2021-02-14T09:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/?page_id=9924"},"modified":"2021-12-13T12:24:04","modified_gmt":"2021-12-13T12:24:04","slug":"what-are-eye-flashes","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/guide-to-eye-conditions\/guide-to-retinal-diseases\/what-are-eye-flashes\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Eye Flashes?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Have you ever been startled by the appearance of small flashes of light out of the corner of your eye?<\/b><\/h2>\n<h2><strong>Eye flashes<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>When eye flashes appear out of nowhere, they can be a cause for concern. Eye flashes can be a normal part of the aging process or can sometimes signal a serious <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/guide-to-eye-conditions\/guide-to-retinal-diseases\/retinal-diseases\/\">retinal eye disease<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Eye flashes are typically noticed from the corner of one or both eyes, and can present in various shapes, colors and sizes.<\/p>\n<p>Eye flashes can appear as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Bright flickering spots<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Streaks of light<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Bright jagged lines, similar to a lightning bolt<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Bursts of light, similar to a camera flash or fireworks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><i>Eye flashes that appear similar to a lightning bolt are a common visual symptom of ocular migraines.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>For many people, eye flashes may be more prominent first thing in the morning and slowly fade as the day continues. Others may only notice flashes when sitting in a dark room.<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you experience any eye pain or blurry vision, <a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1626760891136000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFHnklrD-k7GckF_J6pnDwdBDDa9Q\">contact an eye doctor<\/a>\u00a0near you, who can diagnose and treat the condition.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>SEE RELATED:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/guide-to-eye-conditions\/guide-to-retinal-diseases\/what-is-macular-edema\/\">What Is Macular Edema?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t<div class=\"practice-search-widget\">\n\t\t<h3>Find an eye doctor near you<\/h3>\n\t\t\n\t<form class=\"practice-search-form practice-search-form-widget\" action=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/results\/\" method=\"get\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"page\" class=\"practice-search-page\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_latitude\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_longitude\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"address\" class=\"practice-search-address\" placeholder=\"City, Surburb or Address\" value=\"\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\n\t\t\n\n\t\t<button type=\"submit\" class=\"practice-search-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M10.6796 0.130005C9.15708 0.130059 7.66615 0.5646 6.38198 1.38258C5.09781 2.20057 4.07373 3.36803 3.43004 4.74783C2.78634 6.12763 2.54976 7.66246 2.74808 9.17205C2.9464 10.6816 3.57139 12.1033 4.54964 13.27L0.729639 17.08C0.6364 17.1732 0.562439 17.2839 0.511979 17.4058C0.461519 17.5276 0.435547 17.6581 0.435547 17.79C0.435547 17.9219 0.461519 18.0524 0.511979 18.1743C0.562439 18.2961 0.6364 18.4068 0.729639 18.5C0.917942 18.6883 1.17334 18.7941 1.43964 18.7941C1.5715 18.7941 1.70207 18.7681 1.82389 18.7177C1.94571 18.6672 2.0564 18.5932 2.14964 18.5L5.99964 14.62C7.35406 15.6038 8.98566 16.1324 10.6596 16.13C12.7814 16.13 14.8162 15.2871 16.3165 13.7869C17.8168 12.2866 18.6596 10.2517 18.6596 8.13C18.6596 6.00827 17.8168 3.97344 16.3165 2.47315C14.8162 0.97286 12.7814 0.130005 10.6596 0.130005H10.6796ZM10.6796 14.13C9.49295 14.13 8.33291 13.7781 7.34622 13.1188C6.35952 12.4595 5.59049 11.5225 5.13636 10.4261C4.68224 9.32975 4.56342 8.12335 4.79493 6.95946C5.02644 5.79558 5.59788 4.72648 6.437 3.88736C7.27611 3.04825 8.34521 2.4768 9.5091 2.24529C10.673 2.01378 11.8794 2.1326 12.9757 2.58673C14.0721 3.04085 15.0092 3.80989 15.6685 4.79658C16.3277 5.78328 16.6796 6.94332 16.6796 8.13C16.6796 9.7213 16.0475 11.2474 14.9223 12.3726C13.7971 13.4979 12.2709 14.13 10.6796 14.13Z\" fill=\"#fff\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t<button type=\"button\" class=\"practice-search-use-my-location\">\n\t\t\tSearch near me\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\n\t<\/form>\n\n\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<h2><b>What causes eye flashes?<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Posterior vitreous detachment (PVD):<\/b> This is one of the most common causes of eye flashes. This condition occurs as part of the natural aging process when the vitreous humor, the gel inside the eye, shrinks and detaches from the retina. A sudden onset of this condition can cause the sudden appearance of eye flashes or of a large floater in the visual field.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Retinal tear or detachment: <\/b>When the retina detaches from its normal position at the back of the eye, or a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/eye-conditions\/macular-degeneration-guide\/macular-diseases\/\">macular disease<\/a> suddenly appears, total or partial blindness can occur.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>This serious condition requires immediate medical attention.<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Optic neuritis:<\/b> When the optic nerve becomes inflamed by an infection or nerve-related disorder it can lead to total or partial blindness.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>This is an emergency that requires immediate medical attention.<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Increased eye pressure:<\/b> This can occur from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/a-guide-to-eye-turns\/hidden-visual-problems-stemming-from-a-concussion-or-traumatic-brain-injury\/\">head or eye injury<\/a>, coughing forcefully, or from simply rubbing your eyes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>A sudden spike in eye pressure requires emergency medical attention.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><b>When to call an eye doctor\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b>Seek immediate medical attention if you notice a sudden onset of eye flashes along with any of the following symptoms:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Blurred vision<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Partial vision loss<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Darkened vision<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">Dizziness<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Although in many cases, eye flashes are caused by posterior vitreous detachment, eye flashes can be a sign of a more serious eye condition.<\/p>\n<p><strong>LEARN MORE:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/guide-to-eye-conditions\/guide-to-retinal-diseases\/\">Guide to Retinal Disease<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>If you see eye flashes, it is always best to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\">schedule an eye exam<\/a> to rule out any serious eye conditions that may require immediate attention.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Your eye doctor can treat the underlying cause of eye flashes and eliminate these visual disturbances while protecting your eyes and preserving your vision.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Seeing an eye doctor for regular eye exams is the best way to protect your eye health and vision.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever been startled by the appearance of small flashes of light out of the corner of your eye? Eye flashes When eye flashes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9925,"parent":20096,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-article.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[297,89,321,508,369,368,299],"class_list":["post-9924","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-blurry-vision","tag-brain-injury","tag-eye-emergency","tag-floaters","tag-macular-disease","tag-retinal-disease","tag-vision-loss"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What Are Eye Flashes? - Optometrists.org<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/guide-to-eye-conditions\/guide-to-retinal-diseases\/what-are-eye-flashes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Are Eye Flashes? - Optometrists.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Have you ever been startled by the appearance of small flashes of light out of the corner of your eye? 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