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The Columbia Guide to Basic Elements of Eye Care pp 55–61Cite as

Floaters and Flashes

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Abstract

Floaters and flashes are common visual symptoms that can signal sight- or life-threatening disease but most often represent no significant morbidity. Determining the etiology, therefore, is of critical importance. Retinal tears and retinal detachments (RD), for example, which sometimes require emergency intervention, must be differentiated from benign etiologies such as uncomplicated vitreous detachment and migraine.

Keywords

  • Floaters and flashes in the eye
  • Eye floaters and flashes
  • Syneresis
  • Posterior vitreous detachment
  • Retinal tears and retinal detachment
  • Proliferative diabetic retinopathy
  • Migraine headache-associated visual auras

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  • DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-10886-1_5
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Suggested Reading

  • American Academy of Ophthalmology. Basic and Clinical Science Course. Section 12. Retina and Vitreous, 2015–2016.

    Google Scholar 

  • Milston R, Madigan MC, Sebag J. Vitreous floaters: etiology, diagnostics, and management. Surv Ophthalmol. 2016;61(2):211–27.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA

    Jason Horowitz MD

  2. Department of Ophthalmology, Edward S. Harkness Eye Institute, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA

    Jason Horowitz MD

Authors
  1. Jason Horowitz MD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jason Horowitz MD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA

    MD Daniel S. Casper

  2. Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA

    Dr. George A. Cioffi

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Horowitz, J. (2019). Floaters and Flashes. In: Casper, D., Cioffi, G. (eds) The Columbia Guide to Basic Elements of Eye Care. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10886-1_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10886-1_5

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-10885-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-10886-1

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