Flash of light on my left eye

[PedroPrado]

Hello. Im 30 years old, male, diagnosed with hypermetropia on the left eye. I dont wear glasses, because i can see very well and never had issues reading, etc.

A month ago i noticed that, after looking at a very bright white PC screen, that i have some floaters in the form of dots and lines Maybe they were always there but i they become obvious after watching a bright white screen for several minutes. This doest bother me at all because i dont see them often during the day, only when im watching a white screen and im really looking for them. I can describe them as a couple of tiny lines and 3 dots.

I noticed also that, on my left eye, i have a little redness on my sclera, on the left down corner. Its not very noticeable, and its more pinkish than red, but its there. Its more noticeable during the first minutes after i wake up.

Now, yesterday, i noticed something like a flash of light, a circle, on my left eye, at the left peripheral vision. Its hard to me to explain what it is but i will do my best. Ill give a reference: with my right eye, when its open, if i gently press the eye placing my finger on the eyelid and making a gentle press to the left, i can see a circle on my peripheral vision on the other side of the eye (where there's no pressure), that will disappear when i release the pressure. I consider this to be normal, right? (i hope so) Well, the thing is, that i noticed this circle just by moving my eyes, on my left eye. It's like a "flash", not permanent. Then, after some minutes, it appeared again.

So, i began to move my eyes to all sides to see if the issue repeated, and i coundt see that circle again. What i did then was to open my eyes completely (like with a "surprised face", trying to push the eyes forward), and when i did that the circle appeared immediately, just like when i pressed the right eye with my eyelid. Again, i opened my eyes completely and the circle appeared again, only on my left eye, nothing on my right one.

I worried and i didnt open my eyes like that again. This issue didnt repeat for the rest of the day.

Today, i woke up and began working on my computer. After i while, i noticed the flash again, just by moving my eyes. I opened my eyes completely just like i did yesterday, and then again that circle appeared on my left eye on the same spot. I noticed then, that this circle is a lot more obvious when i push my eyes forward, on the same spot and only on my left eye.

So, is it normal to see this circle when opening my eyes completely, trying to move my eyes forward? Because i dont recall seeing it before and im sure that i opened my eyes completely in several ocations during my life and never noticed it.

So, to sum up:

- I have some floaters that i only see in bright white screens and not during normal activities. I dont know for how long this floaters have been on my eyes but i noticed them a month ago after staring at a white screen for a long time.
- I have a pinkish tone on the left down corner of my left eye. Not very noticeable and more apparent during the first minutes of the day.
- Since yesterday i noticed some flash of lights on my left eye, on the left peripheral vision. This flashes of light become a lot more apparent when i try to move my eyes forward by opening my eyes completely.

Thanks in advance.

[PedroPrado]

Thanks for your quick reply. During the last hour i havent noticed the flash again, so im more inclined that this only occurs when i open my eyes completely, like forcing them forward. Is this normal with flashes? Is this a common symptom of a possible retinal tear?

I want to make sure that what i have can be described as "flashes", because maybe i didnt explain myself very well. I can reproduce what im having on my left eye, on my right eye, if i gently press the right eye placing my finger on the eyelid and making a gentle press to the left, i can see a circle on my peripheral vision on the other side of the eye (where there's no pressure), that will disappear when i release the pressure. That effect is what im having on my left eye when i open my eyes completely and "force" my eyes forward.

Thank you in advance.

[Ray T Oyakawa, MD]

You need to see an ophthalmologist for an examination of the retina and the red area.   Please goggle "Flashes and Floater".  The main concern here is a a retinal tear and subsequent retinal detachment.

Dr. O.