Occasional big floating cloudy patches

[teritee]

Occasionally, there will be a cloudy patch that obscures my vision, often covering the full field of sight in the eye. If I gently rub my eyelid, it moves off to the side. Sometimes, it comes again within a day or two, and sometimes it doesn't reappear for weeks or even months. This has come up two or three times this week, so it's on my mind. Usually, I only notice it in the right eye, but today it happened in the left one. The first time this happened, 7 or 8 years ago, I immediately went to the local eye hospital, where I got diagnosed with nascent cataracts in both eyes, so I assumed that the cloudy patch was a symptom of the cataracts. In the meantime, I've been treating the cataracts pretty successfully with Ayurvedic medicines like elaneer kuzhampu. They are still very small, though they fluctuate a bit, getting worse when there is more stress in my life, and decreasing again later. I get examined twice a year, and the cataracts are still stage 1. But I'm confused because I've recently learned that those floating patches are not related to the cataracts. I always assumed cataracts could float, so I never thought to ask any of the doctors about it. What am I experiencing?

[Ron_AKA]

Here is a bit more information on the OCT procedure. Since it is an optical method of examining the eye, it is better done sooner rather than later, as a cataract can interfere with the test.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/17293-optical-coherence-tomography

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

Yes, OCT has revolutionized  ophthalmic diagnosis. Don't know how we got along without it.

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

Cataracts don't float and your symptoms are not at all typical of cataracts. I suggest you see an EYE MD ophthalmologist that specializes in retina and macular disease. You need some special tests,  expert exam of retina,  Macular and nerve fiber layer OCT,   visual field test and maybe fluorscene angiography. Start work lining that type of consult soon, usually a long wait time to get in.

[teritee]

Thanks for your answer. I recently had a checkup with the doctors at the regional eye hospital here, but didn't think to mention that because it doesn't happen so often and wasn't happening while I was there. Fortunately, where I live in Nepal, wait times are not an issue at all, so I can go back over tomorrow. I hope they can do all the possible tests you mentioned. As that was the symptom that caused me to go and get diagnosed in the first place, I always assumed it was the cataracts. I definitely have slight cataracts, as has been confirmed by the numerous ophthalmologists I've seen over the years since they were diagnosed, but I don't really have any persistent cloudiness that I can't rub away. Some blurriness from presbyopia, yes, but not cloudiness. I really have no idea how that could be possible.

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

Most people by age 65 have some degree of cataracts, often they are assymptomatic and cause no problems.

[teritee]

My cataracts haven't developed enough to be a problem, and this symptom, although it's annoying, has never caused any significant problem as I have always been able to deal with it successfully. It's obviously something on the surface of the eye. I'm inclined to think that it's not indicative of anything serious as I've had the same symptom, and only occasionally, for several years and it has never gotten worse. During that time, I've had many eye exams that involved a variety of tests, none of which detected any pathology other than the cataracts. I go for an exam twice a year. It turns out that our eye hospital here does use all the latest equipment. I didn't know, as I never asked what any of the tests are called. There must be other people having the same issue. It's confusing that I can't find any reports of it. Maybe it just seems too insignificant to mention. If you can easily rub it away, and it doesn't get worse, it hardly seems worth bothering about. But now I'm really curious.

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

I have no further comments.