Flashes - Other Common Eye Diseases Of Later Life: The Aging Eye Preventing And Treating Eye Disease
Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School
Flashes
Seeing shooting stars — a phenomenon called photopsia — is not unusual as people age. Solitary flashes appear as sparks or minuscule strands of light, almost like streaks of lightning across the sky. They occur when the vitreous gel bumps, rubs, or tugs against the retina. Generally harmless, they require no treatment. In rare cases, they may be a sign of more severe retinal complications. If their appearance is sudden or accompanied by a shower of floaters or a loss of peripheral vision, you need to see your ophthalmologist. These flashes of light are different from the flashing or zigzag lights of migraine headache, which some people experience simultaneously in both eyes, typically for as long as 20 minutes, but sometimes for 60 minutes or even longer.
| Last updated: | June 19, 2007 |
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Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.
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