People over 50 (and under) take note - I just had emergency eye surgery (crosspost from GD)
I'm 59. Over the past few years I had been seeing an increasing number of "floaties" in my vision. They were a nuisance but weren't really getting the way. I'd talked to my doctor and optometrist about them. They said they were a result of old age and to ignore them unless they "got bad".
Last month I went outside in bright sunlight and was surrounded by what looked like a cloud of mosquitos. Bearing in mind I'm in Canada and it's still winter with snow on the ground - this is unlikely. I also noticed some of my floaties had gotten bigger.
I went to the optometrist for a prescription for new glasses. I mentioned these symptoms to him and he looked at my eyes but didn't find anything wrong. He did say if it got any worse, come back.
On Thursday I was at the theatre and was distracted by what appeared to be flashing lights on the edge of my vision. I woke up Friday with something that looked like a big hairy light brown spider directly in my line of vision. Again, not indigenous to this region. I booked another optometrist appointment but he said if got worse, go straight to emergency. I woke up this morning with my eye feeling really painful so I got my boyfriend to drive me in.
The doctor at emerg looked at me with fancier equipment than the optometrist had available, swabbed my eye with stuff and tapped on my corner with stuff and shone lights at it. Couldn't find anything wrong, but he sent me upstairs to the fancy eye clinic. There I was looked at by not one, not two, but three ophthalmologists including one procedure where they pushed my eyelids back with some sort of instrument and looked into my eyes with something resembling a virtual reality headset.
Finally they explained what was wrong. In the back of the eye there is a vitrious fluid that acts as a lubricant. Over time this starts to dry out and peels away from the back of the retina. Occasionally it doesn't come away cleanly and causes a tiny tear in the retina. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posterior_vitreous_detachment
Left untreated, this can grow until the entire retina is affected and you go blind. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retinal_detachment
They said I needed laser treatment right NOW to weld my retina in place before it tore further. They ran me downstairs to ANOTHER clinic with even fancier gear, got me up on a table, more drops in my eyes, then had me look in various directions while they zapped my eye with a green laser. Took 10 minutes, mostly because I followed instructions exactly and was able to bear the small amount of pain. Then they sat me up, told me I could go home as long as somebody drove me and I wore sunglasses as I'd be sensitive to light for the rest of the day. Oh, and no boxing.
The doctors said I came in at exactly the right time, as soon as I saw symptoms. They said this condition is very common in people over 50 and everybody should be checked for it.
(By the way, under Canadian Health Care, my cost $20 parking + lunch for my boyfriend)
= new reply since forum marked as read
I've had floaters but they come and go. They've been gone for about six years. I had these flashes of light that tend to spread out until they disappear, but that too come and go. I've got an appointment to see an eye doctor, as recommended yearly exam. I've put it off, but with your heads, up I'll get that done this week. Thanks! 
