Arc flashes? Floater dot? Dystophobia? One month after cataract surgery
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one month after uneventful right eye cataract surgery (monofocal toric technis ll lenses) stated seeing for the first time bright arc like flashes in outer corner of right eye. comes and goes..not throughout the whole day. just here and there. seem to notice when leaving brightly lit room, then going into dark room. Few of those arc bright flashes same area. They are very brief. I've had for like 2 days a single black dot floater. Had floaters before cataract surgery. But just started to see this one teensy black dot floater. vision is the same.
But of course I'm worried and concerned. Even.more so I'm avoiding going anywhere. Been staying home except for that one month ago right eye cataract surgery and the following week (3 weeks ago left eye (same lens type) Trying to do research on this but finding conflicting info. No flashes when eyes closed.
is this all dysphotopsia? retinal tear? vitreous detachment?..or do I just need to monitor over a few days. These arc corner right eye random flashes only started today. Dot floater maybe 2 days ago and randomly also. (Im.65y.o)
0 likes, 31 replies
Bookwoman ayeaye
Edited
ayeaye, I had similar symptoms at the end of January, about 4 months after my surgeries (Alcon monofocals). I saw flashes of light in my left peripheral vision, along with two black dots, and after a few hours the dots turned into a large, spiderwebby floater. I went to my ophthalmologist, who sent me to a retina specialist for a better look. He diagnosed a vitreous detachment with a small vitreous hemorrhage, and said that that the floater would gradually get better (which it has), although it might not disappear entirely.
He told me that the 6-8 weeks after a VD is the prime time for a retinal detachment, and to call immediately if I see the typical 'curtain' come down in my vision. So far so good. I'm due for a follow-up visit in May, although I doubt that's going to happen.
It's certainly possible that your flashes are dysphotopsia. If I go into a certain room in my house in the evening, when the overhead lights are on, I always see the arc flash of my lens in one eye. It only happens in that room - must be the angle of the light. If yours is happening randomly, however, I would suspect a VD.
I would call your ophthalmologist and discuss it. S/he will either ask you to come in if it's really necessary, or put your mind at ease, and in either case you'll know what's going on.
ayeaye Bookwoman
Edited
hi Bookwoman! thanks for your reply! Today. the second day of arc flashes..I took more notice as to when..it seems like when I'm facing bright light and then going into dimmer room. I even caught it when watching a bright TV and I turned to the side looking into the darker part of the room and would catch an arc edge flash on the outer corner of that one eye. So Im.keeping track. The black dot was missing today.( I didn't miss him lol) hope he goes away forever!!
I'll give it another 2-3 days so I can maybe have more to tell the dr..or maybe less that I wouldn't need to! I'm not even sure get seen g patients and that might be by ozone! I'm from.NYC and things are insane here! ..and I do not want to venture out anywhere among people unless they are across my wide street!!!
ayeaye Bookwoman
Posted
hi Bookeoman...when do you notice your arc flashes?
Bookwoman ayeaye
Edited
I only see my arc flashes in the evening, when going into that one room.
NYC is my hometown, although I no longer live there, and my son currently lives in Brooklyn. I'm hoping the city is about to turn the corner, and that life will begin to return to something resembling normalcy in the next few months. I wish you all the best!
ayeaye Bookwoman
Posted
thank you Bookwoman. lucky for you to not live in NYC now. my neighbor drove to Florida a month ago just to visit his son and now has been staying there and won't come back for maybe another 3 months!
anne603 ayeaye
Edited
Hi, similar to book woman... arc flashes right on periphery of vision sounds just like what I started getting one or two weeks after.. Very brief,, just when I walk in to a room in evening and catch spot light sideways on, I think. Dr says it's light catching edge of lens and it'll disappear in a few months. Already having had that reassurance I notice it much less, now one month in. If you get it in different circumstances though may be different I suppose.
Glad you got the other one done in time, I am stuck now between the two, but there are far more serious problems in the world..
ayeaye anne603
Posted
thanks for reply. How long ago did you gave your one eye done? Did you see any dot or dots at all? This right eye had cataract surgery March 5. so these arc flashes just started yesterday! I paid more attention today and did notice when there is a change of lighting in the room. as going from a well lit room to a dimmer room or dimmer stairs is when I got them today. I was waiting for that black darn dot to show up in my vision but "he didn't show up"...just some other little floater or two.
My left eye was done March 12 and at that time I was petrified to go into that hospital, but figured this covid is going to get worse by the hour. ( was almost going to cancel) but I decided I better tough up and go get it done. .and so 3 days later all elective surgeries were canceled and 2 cover patients became 12 in 3 days at my hospital.
I'm in NYC...so you know how scary it is...and I do not want to set foot out anywhere!!
RonAKA ayeaye
Edited
To me the arc flashes sound like positive dysphotopsia. The floaters may be just left over bits from the surgery. I would not get too concerned about either at this point, and a wait (6 months or so) and see approach is likely best. One statistic I saw on dysphotopsia is that 20% may see it, but after a few months only 10% of the 20% still see it as a problem. That works out to 2%!
The lenses you have are a new design that are frosted at the edges which is supposed to reduce this effect. It may take some time for that frosting to build up cells around it, which may reduce the square edge reflections from the lens. The frosting is also supposed to reduce the tendency of the toric lens to rotate.
There are a couple of simple things to consider. One is drops for dry eyes, to see if that helps. Can't really hurt. The other consideration is your residual error. Have you had your eyes tested (visual acuity) so you know what your residual spherical and cylindrical (astigmatism) error is? If it is significant (I'm thinking more than 0.25), there may be some benefit in prescription eye glasses or contacts to correct the remaining residual error. Before you invest in glasses however, you should have the surgeon verify that your lens is stable and not rotating which would change the astigmatism correction.
Google this phrase for a fairly technical article written from the surgeon's perspective.
Eyeworld Understanding positive dysphotopsia Michelle Dalton
ayeaye RonAKA
Posted
hi! thank you so much for your reply! You actually calmed me down!! today the second day of these new arc edge flashes- well I notice when going from.bright room.into dim.or dark room or stairwell ( I have 3 floors in my home). I am.keeping track. Yes I went with these square technics because its suppose to hold down rotation.
my eyes were tested 4 days after right eye and one week.later I had left eye done and then saw surgeon 4 days later and eyes were 20/20
he said 1.75 for computer and 2.50 for book or phone. I don't know anymore. I know he used the ORA in surgery and I heard him.say 14 when doing right eye and he said 13.5 when left.
I chose no sedation except for eye nu.bing drops for both eyes!
RonAKA ayeaye
Posted
From what I understand about 6 weeks post op is needed before the lenses settle down to the point where a visual acuity test is reliable.
ayeaye RonAKA
Posted
hi..so you mean you can have20/20
for weeks then after the 7th week and later that can change drastically?
Chris53317 ayeaye
Edited
Maybe not dramatic. At 6 weeks after surgery my eyes were measured at 20/25 & 20/30. Then at 4 months they were both 20/20.
If you are 20/20 at 6 weeks it could mean there is still room for improvement.
RonAKA ayeaye
Posted
Toric IOL's are very sensitive to angular position. One hopes the surgeon puts then in the right position when the operation is done. However, there is no guarantee they will stay in that position over time.
Night-Hawk RonAKA
Edited
The critical period for toric rotation is early on, doctor told me to avoid things like rubbing the eyes. After several months it should be locked in place pretty well. Mine hasn't rotated after over 2 years since cataract surgery with a tecnis toric IOL, eyeglasses Rx has remained stable. However there was a lot of variation in vision the first 2 months after surgery, some days was very blurry back then like 20/100 or worse before stabilizing after could stop taking the steroid, etc eyedrops when it ended up about 20/25 or so, though correctable with eyeglasses to 20/15.
ayeaye RonAKA
Posted
😮🙁🤞
ayeaye Chris53317
Posted
wow..I didn't think they could get better after 6 weeks..happy yours did tho!
ayeaye Night-Hawk
Posted
did you have any floaters or sometimes it seems a little haze comes and goes in that right eye..vision is very clear and the same but almost like I feel there might be a little haze or like there was light fog on the window when you breathe on it and then goes away..hmm its the start of 6 weeks for that eye
Night-Hawk ayeaye
Edited
During the first 8 weeks after surgery, yes there were times were the vision would get blurry or hazy and then clear up. Or the other way, was clear in the morning and got worse later in the day. After the first 2 months, vision got stable though and floaters were gone or significantly reduced now. I see one in my left (natural lens) eye if I look hard for it, but not in the right eye.
ayeaye Night-Hawk
Posted
night-ha ..thnx for the reply. Do you know what was it that caused the hazy ones? were they floaters?