I have had Lasik surgery this past June.
About 5 weeks post-op I developed floaters
and some flashing in one eye.
The flashing stopped after about 4 weeks.
I have quite a few floaters remaining.
My doctor says that my eyes look good and that
neither of these are a result of Lasik.
Is there any other opinions or results out there to indicate otherwise?
I was about 6.5 in both eyes prior and now
am 20/20 and 20/25, some night glare.

Floaters are a result of aging changes in the clear gel (vitreous) that fills the eye. The vitreous liquifies, shrinks, and separates from the retina, casting shadows which results in the perceptions of "floaters". This natural aging process occurs early in individuals who are nearsighted and those with diabetes. There is no evidence that LASIK surgery directly causes floaters.

Hope this helps.

Neil Friedman, MD

I notice 2 types of floaters post lasik:

1) The "clear" ones that look like little worms. I know they were there before.

2) "Black specs" and "black eyelashes" that I have absolutely no memory of having. I don't rule out that they were there pre-lasik, but my hunch is that they were not b/c they are VERY noticeable. I have always worked on a computer screen and that is where I now can't help but notice them.

Maybe these "black things" are a by-product of lasik that the present science doesn't account for. Lasik is relatively new and I believe that we just don't know all about it [for better or for worse]. Plus, it might be hard for Docs to recognize them if they are "artificially" induced and the Docs have not had Lasik themselves.

This is nothing against the docs -- just my belief that we don't know everything about Lasik yet. But I know they are working on it!

Thanks

Whether or not you've had surgery, if you notice new flashes or floaters (especially lots of them), see your ophthalmologist for a retinal exam. They may represent a serious retinal problem, or most often, benign vitreous liquifaction or separation.

This next part is purely anecdotal:
I did LASIK on a physician about a year ago. She had perfectly clear vitreous before surgery (I examined her personally). Post-op, she had one of the most enormous vitreous floaters I had ever seen (fortunately, the retina was fine). My guess is that it's very likely to be due to surgery. The suction ring that's placed on the eye certainly can stress the vitreous jelly and cause a large vitreous separation.
Now speaking as an ophthalmologist who has always had floaters and had LASIK 5 months ago, I'll admit that I was concerned that I might get a huge floater after surgery too, but fortunately it did not happen.
So in the approx. 1000 or so patients I've seen before and after surgery, only one had a very significant floater. It's not typical, but obviously, anything is possible.

Bottom line: If you've got new floaters, it doesn't matter where they came from....Just get them checked out to rule out anything serious.

Should the "Natural Aging Process" that floaters are a product of begin at age 36?
I never had any kind of floater prior to Lasik.
At 5 weeks post-op my Doctor gave me a retinal
exam because I had started getting flashes.
He at that time noticed a large floater.
I have had 4 retinal exams since then and
everything looks fine. I am due for another
exam in a couple weeks. My vision has remained
stable throughout. (20/20 and 20/25)
I know of others that had similar experiences
with floaters after Lasik.

If you have a new large floater after LASIK that you did not have before, then it very well may be related. I've learned never to say never. Fortunately, it is almost never dangerous, annoying, though, I'll agree.
See my previous note on having had LASIK. I've had floaters since my teens, so yes, they can occur prior to age 36. They are much more common in any nearsighted person.
Glad you got checked out and everything is OK.
Good Luck. Dean Hu