It’s one thing to see brown or tan floaters and spots in one’s vision, but just what does it mean when these spots and dots are BLUE?
“Floaters are seen as dots (sometimes appearing blue) in the vision that move around,” says Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler, MD, eye surgeon and founder of The Boxer Wachler Vision Institute, and developer of the Holcomb C3-R® procedure which treats a degenerative eye disease.
“Migraine headaches can cause blue dots and other types of color spots,” says Dr. Boxer Wachler.
“Seeing everything with a blue tint can be caused by Viagra and related medications that increase high amounts of nitric oxide. Some over-the-counter supplements could cause blue spots.”
This interesting side effect is harmless. Floaters can also appear as blobs or squiggles.
Can a brain tumor cause blue floaters?
Unfortunately, it’s possible for a brain tumor to cause floaters, but not specifically blue ones.
However, by the time a brain tumor begins causing the experience of floaters, squiggles or spots in one’s vision, there will very, very likely be other symptoms, such as a sensation of a foreign object in one’s eye that won’t go away.
If you have new-onset specks, spots, dots, lines or other types of floaters, the cause is FAR more likely to be something other than a tumor.
What about a brain aneurysm?
A cerebral aneurysm can cause floaters, but not specifically blue ones.
If in addition to new-onset spots in your field of vision, you’ve noticed a drooping eyelid, nausea, blurred vision or double vision, these signs heighten the suspicion for an aneurysm (a bulge in a blood vessel where the interior lining is weak).
More Causes of General Eye Floaters
• Age: over 50
• Asteroid hyalosis (a benign condition involving accumulation of tiny harmless crystals in the eye’s vitreous gel)
• Diabetes
• Eye surgery
• Infection
• Injury
• Nearsightedness: severe
• Posterior vitreous detachment (age related and sounds a lot worse than it actually is, but it’s benign)
• Retina tear or detachment
• Syphilis
• Tuberculosis
• Tumors in the eye (this cause is extremely rare)
If you’ve recently had LASIK, this can temporarily increase floaters, but does not make them appear blue in color.
Of course, if floaters – regardless of color – become annoying, you should see an eye doctor.
Dr. Boxer Wachler has delivered hundreds of lectures on eye surgery to thousands of eye surgeons from around the world, and is a pioneer in keratoconus treatment.eeing blue spots in
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer. ne’s field of vision
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Top image: Shutterstock/fizkes
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