Swimming Lights, Flashes of Light

[jayw383]

30 year old male. After visiting an Ophthalmologist for a possible symptoms of a retinal detachment, I was told my vision is fine (20/20), and that the lights may be a result of the viscous fluid detaching, or my eyes naturally aging. I'm also a migraine sufferer and I'm well accustomed to the look and effects of migraine aura, which look like vibrating oil slick like lines that are very easily isolated in my visual field, whereas these lights are scattered across my entire field of vision.
What I'm experiencing is flashes of light, usually just off of the centre of my visual field, accompanied by faint swimming lights that look like what sperm do under a microscope, but throughout my entire visual field. I've witnessed a larger flash of light being cause by one of the smaller lights streaking across my vision. I also have some dark floaters obstructing my vision, but the doc says they'll go away probably. It's obvious I'm experiencing some sort of phosphene phenomena, that might be painless migraine without aura, but after being examined by a Ophthalmologist I'm not sure where to turn. It's not a retinal detachment, and it's not migraines (migraine diagnosis is a dead end), so what else is there? Is there illnessnesses that this could be a symptom of? What doctor would be best to see? As soon as I mention I suffer from migraines most doctors perform cognitive vision test to make sure it’s not a stroke and basically send me home, or to the eye doctor. Any help would be appreciated.

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

I would suggest you see a neuro-ophthalmologist, normally medical schools have one on the faculty of the department of ophthalmology.

It can often be difficult to determine which "lights" are due to vitreous traction, entopic phenomena, atypical migraines or retina-vacular disorders. The neuroophthalmologist helps work thro ugh these possible causes.

JCH MD

[jayw383]

*vitreous