Floaters after eye dilation

[kukulski]

The day after getting an eye dilation exam, I noticed a large cobweb floater in one of my eyes.  I didn't connect the two at first until I realized it happened consistently.  I now have large cobweb floaters in both of my eyes that keep getting bigger with each exam ... it's been about 8 years since my first dilation exam and they are not getting any better.  Has anyone heard of this before?  My eye doctors recommend that I keep getting the exams but I'm worried.

[letty275]

7 years ago I had an eye exam.   On my way home, the right eye burned and felt like it was scratched..  I went back for a follow up visit but was told they could find nothing on the eye then  give me drops. It went away in a few weeks but felt terrible.

2 weeks ago I decided to go for an exam (different doctor) he asked me if I had floaters which I then asked, " what are they"  Exam completed and was told my eyes are healthy.  Tthe next day I had a gray shadow which was very bothersome.  I went back to the doctor who told me it was a floater and there is nothing you can do because it is age related. I did not have this before my eye exam.  Then next day the right eye developed black squiggly lines.  I can not believe this is due to age but how can one prove this without a medical experience.

[Betonaster]

I agree.  The only thing I can think of is to bring national attention to the issue through media.  But who will believe the media now.  A class action lawsuit is also impossible.

[lizbethjeane]

I think perhaps it is the combination of dilation and the extremely bright light used to examine the eyes that is the cause.  The first time both were done was to determine the cause of a tiny black spot - the Dr. said it was a vitreous detachment.  The next day, I had lines in both eyes.  I had not had anything in the right eye before the exam.  I thought it was a coincidence so went for the same exam the following 2 years.  Each time - the NEXT day I had almost double the lines/dots in both eyes.  This past one was the worst.  My right eye is full of squiggly lines and dots.  It is VERY difficult to focus around them and I am a reading teacher!  I will not have this exam again.  I cannot afford to lose the little areas of unobstructed vision I have left.  I am extremely near-sighted and also farsighted.

[Betonaster]

I believe you.  There is also a direct correlation between my recent eye dilation and significantly increased photosensitivity, blurred vision, and, one thing more:  Since the dilation, I have been seeing "running" black lines - like catching site of a mouse, you know?  I passed it off.  This morning, I saw the black in the viscous portion of my left eye.  They all keep saying there was no cause and effect, and it is, I am more convinced, a lie.

[kukulski]

I understand that floaters increase with age (I've read about a hundred articles that all pretty much say the same thing) ... but I also know that at age 24 I walked in for my first eye exam with no floaters.  The next day, this stringy black mass appeared in my left eye ... extending pretty much from the top of my peripheral vision to the bottom.  At the time, I connected it more to the eye doctor making some mistake and not the eye exam so I stopped going there.  Several years later (and no new floaters), I found another eye doctor and had another eye exam and the next day a long string appeared in my right eye ... that is when I realized that it was not the doctor but something about the exam.  All the doubt I had that this might just be a weird coincidence was cleared when I scheduled another exam with a specialist and had the floaters appear again.  I'm just trying to figure out the connection between the two but can't find the answer ... I've found a few similar posts but with no answers.  I know the exams are important, but at this rate, I won't be able to see well enough to drive when I'm 35.

[kemiia]

I had a similar experience. Although studies show they are unrelated, I only started experiencing this annoying floaters after eye dilation. My eyes were exposed to intense light and I believe the eye test ruined my eyes. I wish I had gone to a different doctor

[JohnHaganMD]

All ophthalmologists and optometrists use the same type of instruments and the same type of drops.  

[Betonaster]

My vision has been terribly effected by the dilation.  There was poor procedure, in that I was also not advised to be driven home.  I was not given sunglasses. The effects of the mydriatic increased as the hours passed.  I was disabled for an entire week.  I believe the drops used might have been contaminated, or that the strength was too great - or there was a complication that goes unadmitted by the physicians and optometrists, and the drug companies.  My vision worsened to the point where I have had to curtail many activities.  I turned to both the ophthalmologist, and my primary care physician for assistance, and was put off by both.  

There is no agency that would attempt to address the harm caused that day.  The Board of Licensure would not take any real action, even just to investigate for possible contraindications to having the dilation.  What patients like us are left with is a disability where they had been none.

[JohnHaganMD]

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[emour]

Well, there is an interesting study, where they say that oxidative stress (which is possibly induced by the bright light while examining the dilated eye) can activate Microglial cells to produce enzymes which can degrade the collagen in the vitreous body (which theoretically can lead to the formation of new floaters). The paper is not about floaters thought but a speculation of what leads to the liquefaction of the vitreous body.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3718489/

"Microglial cells can be activated to produce enzymes by oxidative stress [28,29]. In the retina, the highest cellular activity and the maximum amount of incoming light are found at the macula [30,31]. Therefore, most oxidative stress can be expected at this site. Interestingly, vitreous liquefaction is first seen near the macula [32,33]. This supports the hypothesis that microglia-mediated trypsin-induced collagen degradation is likely a cause of vitreous liquefaction. The most important function of microglia is detecting and clearing dead cells and infectious agents [34], so whether collagen degradation is a primary function or a secondary side effect is unknown."

[JohnHaganMD]

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[emour]

Dear dr. John, I know your time might be limited, but I ask you to take some time and read (some of) the paper mentioned above and tell me what do you think about this possibility or why would you think this is not a valid argument.

[MrPresley]

Not discounting the article you posted @emour, but just in time for Halloween this Frankenthread has once again arisen from the grave.

[Gakshs]

I went to the optometrist with one floater in my right eye and after my dilation I noticed an onset of 5 more floaters in my left eye. I panicked and thought I was having retinal detachment and came in for another exam a few weeks later, where they also dilated my eyes. A few days later, I had an onset of little floaters (more than 14 floaters and a threadlike floater which I’ve never had before). I’m mortally terrified that my vision will never go back to normal.

[Gakshs]

If anyone has had a similar experience but the floaters eventually went away please comment

[JohnHaganMD]

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