Do floaters always mean Retinopathy?

@JoeyK No, they don't. For many people they increase with age, but you've done the right thing planning to make an appointment to have your eyes checked

I've had floaters since a teen too. No sign of retinopathy at my last eye test.

Interestingly, the only time my eyes have ever been floater-free was when I spent 6 months living in rural Greece about 16 years ago. Fresh mountain air, mildly physically active, ALL food fresh, unprocessed and simply cooked. Not even stock cubes used. Felt fab.

The floaters reappeared a few months after I got back to the joys of UK supermarkets, even though I have always made an effort to avoid processed pap.

Definitely no correlation between floaters and retinopathy. I've had floaters since I was 12 years old and a frozen snowball was thrown into my eye. I developed type 1 diabetes aged 30 years, and 20 years later, it's only in the past couple of years that background retinopathy has been spotted. The only problem is that occasionally floaters get in the way of lights during field tests at optician.

JoeyK said:

I will make an appt with the eye Dr but just wondering. I've noticed floaters since I was a teen (no diabetes then) but only when I was outside. I notice more now for the last couple years but again only outside and maybe a little on the computer screen. They don't affect my vision just notice then when I move my eyes while walking outside. Some lines and spots.

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I had floaters from teenage years but never notice them now.

Floaters are usually harmless http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/floaters/Pages/Introduction.aspx

However, a sudden increase in floaters (especially if accompanied by 'cobwebs', haze, shadows or a red tinge to the vision) could be due to vitreous haemorrhage. This can occur in advanced retinopathy (proliferative retinopathy) and needs to be seen urgently by an ophthalmologist (within 2 weeks). http://patient.info/health/vitreous-haemorrhage-leaflet

A sudden increase in floaters accompanied by flashing lights and 'cobwebs' and/or areas of blurred vision could be due to retinal detachment (a possible complication of advanced retinopathy) and needs to be seen as an emergency appointment in the eye clinic on the day the symptoms begin. http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Retinal-detachment/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Ya I've always noticed floaters from my teens also,so I guess there quite common.When bored I like to follow then

I first noticed floaters when I was a very small child, and they used to fascinate me - I used to see them best outside on bright days, and I too used to watch them for ages... I think they disappeared for a while and then reappeared intermittently in my teens. Just before I retired and well before I became diabetic, I ended up with a damaged eye surface and a long term case of iritis and my floaters reappeared. So for me they haven't been associated with my diabetes.

I was told at one time that they are actually dead cells floating around.

Robbity

I too have floaters, but my last eye check was normal. I believe medically they're just odd proteins in the vitreous humour of the eye (don't quote me as I might be wrong).