title: Ageing of the vitreous: From acute onset floaters and flashes to retinal detachment.
abstract: Floaters and flashes are most commonly symptoms of age-related degenerative changes in the vitreous body and posterior vitreous detachment. The etiology and pathogenesis of floaters' formation is still not well understood. Patients with acute-onset floaters, flashes and defects in their visual field, represent a medical emergency with the need for same day referral to an ophthalmologist. Indirect ophthalmoscopy with scleral indentation is needed in order to find possible retinal break(s), on-time treatment and prevention of retinal detachment. The molecular and genetic pathogenesis, as well as the epidemiology of the ageing changes of the vitreous is summarized here, with view on the several treatment modalities in relation to their success rate and side-effects.
authors.affiliation: Eye Hospital, University Medical Centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Electronic address: xhlumi@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Xhevat
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lumi
authors.affiliation: Eye Hospital, University Medical Centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Electronic address: marko.hawlina@kclj.si.
authors.forename: Marko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hawlina
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Electronic address: damjan.glavac@mf.uni-lj.si.
authors.forename: Damjan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Glavač
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Szeged, Hungary. Electronic address: facsko.andrea@med.u-szeged.hu.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Facskó
authors.affiliation: Center for Eye Research, Department of Ophthalmology, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, and Norwegian Center for Stem Cell Research, Norway. Electronic address: m.c.moe@medisin.uio.no.
authors.forename: Morten C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Moe
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Institute of Clinical Medicine and Kuopio University Hospital, University of Eastern Finland, Finland. Electronic address: Kai.Kaarniranta@kuh.fi.
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kaarniranta
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Szeged, Hungary; Center for Eye Research, Department of Ophthalmology, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, and Norwegian Center for Stem Cell Research, Norway. Electronic address: petrovski.goran@med.u-szeged.hu.
authors.forename: Goran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Petrovski
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D012163:Retinal Detachment / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy; D020255:Vitreous Detachment / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy
keywords: Acute-onset floaters; Ageing of the vitreous; Flashes; Photopsia; Posterior vitreous detachment; Retinal detachment