Floaters After Cataract Surgery: What’s Normal, When to Worry, and What You Can Do

When you see floaters after cataract surgery, small specks or cobweb-like shapes drifting across your vision. Also known as eye floaters, they happen when the vitreous humor—the gel-like fluid inside your eye—starts to shrink and pull away from the retina. This is called posterior vitreous detachment, a natural aging process that often speeds up after cataract surgery. It’s not a complication of the surgery itself, but the procedure can make it more noticeable because your vision is clearer afterward.

Most people notice floaters suddenly after surgery. They might look like dots, threads, or tiny bugs flying around. If they’ve been there for a few weeks and haven’t changed much, they’re likely harmless. Your brain will slowly learn to ignore them, just like you stop noticing the feeling of your socks. But if you see a sudden shower of new floaters, flashes of light, or a dark curtain moving across your vision, that’s not normal. It could mean a retinal tear or detachment—something that needs urgent care. Studies show that about 1 in 10 people who have cataract surgery develop a posterior vitreous detachment within the first month, and most of those cases don’t lead to serious problems.

Some people worry that the floaters are caused by leftover debris from the surgery. That’s not true. The surgeon removes the cloudy lens and replaces it with a clear artificial one, but the vitreous stays in place. The floaters come from changes inside that gel, not from anything left behind. You can’t prevent them, and no eye drop or supplement will make them disappear. But you can learn to live with them. Try moving your eyes slowly side to side—it can shift the floaters out of your direct line of sight. Avoid staring at bright, plain backgrounds like white walls or clear skies, where they’re most obvious.

What you can control is how you respond. Don’t panic if they show up. Don’t ignore them if they get worse. Keep your follow-up appointments. Tell your eye doctor about any new symptoms, even if they seem small. Many patients assume floaters are just part of aging and don’t mention them—until something serious happens. The key is knowing the difference between normal changes and warning signs. If you’ve had cataract surgery and now see floaters, you’re not alone. But you need to know when to speak up.