Periodic peripheral black spots

For the last few weeks, I have noticed small pinprick black dots appearing in my vision field. Sometimes I swat at them, thinking it's been a gnat or fly. Last week I visited my eye doctor who examined me pretty thoroughly and commented that I have a lot of floaters in my vitreous - not really news to me. I've seen more and more of these whenever looking up at a clear blue sky. But the doctor offered no explanation for the black dots, which are new. Could this not be eye-related, but brain related?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Not brain related. Most likely tiny floaters as floaters come in all sizes and shapes.

JCH III MD

[Braitman]

Thanks for your response. The classic floaters seem like threads or bits of cotton, and I generally only see them when there is a plain background, like the sky. These black spots show up any time, while I'm walking around, looking at just anything around me. They also don't appear directly in my sight, but in my peripheral view. (That's why I've sometimes swatted at them not realizing what they are at first.) Once thing I was warned by my eye doctor was if I start seeing light flashes or "sparks," because that could be something different. Not yet in my case.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

If your "eye doctor" was a limited scope, non-physician optometrist then I would suggest seening a physician Eye MD ophthalmologist to have true medical eye exam. If you did see an Eye MD consider watching to see if things change or get worse. If so suggest you see an Neuro-ophthalmologist.

JCH III MD