Floaters are a result of liquefaction of the vtreous and can be associated with retinal tears. Once the retina is examined and no tear is noted or tears have been treated, floaters typically persist for variable amounts of time. Most frequently, these floaters will settle outside the central vision and patients adapt to their presence. Some patients will have floaters that persist within the central vision resulting in annoyance and even distractions with focal patches of vision loss. For those individuals two types of treatment are available. One it office based and called YAG vitreolysis. While Dr. Narain was the first in the area to offer this treatment, he does not utilize it much. The advantage of YAG laser vitreolysis is that it can be done in the office. The disadvantage of YAG vitreolysis is that it rarely gets rid of the entire floater, it is not effective for clusters of floaters (which are more common) and it can cause a cataract in patients who have not had a cataract surgery. Dr. Narain has found that the most satisfied patients are those that undergo a vitrectomy procedure. In this procedure, a hollow needle is inserted into the eye under microscopic guidance. Vitreous fluid can then be removed from within the eye while the eye is simultaneously infused with saline. When this is done, the majority of vitreous material is removed. The vitreous fluid is replaced by another natural eye fluid called aqueous humor within 24 hours and there is no negative consequence from removal of the vitreous gel. (The vitreous gel is essential in development of the eye but not needed in the adult.) There are rare side effects to the vitrectomy procedure such as a slight increase in the rate of cataract formation and very rare incidence of infection. While many patients start with YAG vitreolysis, the majority will be better served with vitrectomy. Not only is vitrectomy safe, but it is done under local anesthesia. In most cases no stiches are required and patients need only wear an eye patch for a day.