Ask a doctor on the topic of General medicine

black in front of the eyes

August 1, 2012 | 20,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Michael Schröter

Hello, I am 47 years old and have had a noticeable hardening on the right side of my neck for more than 30 years. Out of fear of a cancer diagnosis, I have never consulted a doctor. Recently, I have been experiencing problems with blacking out in front of my eyes. This is so severe that I can no longer read any text. It usually lasts about 30 minutes, comes and goes gradually, and is also associated with flickering in front of my eyes. I visited the doctor this week because of this. He initially referred me to an eye specialist and also mentioned a skull MRI, as he suspects something may be pressing on the optic nerve. My question is whether my symptoms could be related to the hardening in my neck and what that hardening could be. I actually rule out cancer, as it would have likely grown out of my system after 30 years. Sometimes when I turn my head, I also experience a slight cracking in my neck. For about the same amount of time as I have had the hardening, I have also had issues with anxiety, which have always been attributed to a previous heart muscle inflammation. I hope you can tell me how I can be helped, thank you very much.

Dr. med. Michael Schröter

Good evening,
the noticeable hardening in the neck, which has not changed for a long time, is likely a lipoma. This is a growth of fatty tissue that can be removed surgically or attempted to dissolve with lipolysis. I do not see a causal connection with your blackouts.
The cracking in the neck is normal and comes from the vertebral bodies, unless there are problems with the cervical spine. In this case, a simple X-ray would be indicated.

So, nothing to worry about.

Wishing you all the best and

Kind regards

Dr. Schröter