Ask a doctor on the topic of Neurology

Desperate because of eye flickering

December 13, 2012 | 15,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

At the moment, I am at the end of my nerves and don't know what else to do.

First of all, a little about me: I am male and 24 years old.

For the past 2 months, I have been suffering from eye flickering. I notice it most in darkened rooms (e.g. in apartments, restaurants, etc., where only a few candles and dim lights are on). If I also watch a television at the same time, I perceive it even more strongly. It's not as bad with iPhones or PCs, maybe because I am closer to them.

I also experience this phenomenon with striped patterns. The other day at the bakery, I sat at a wooden table that was slightly striped and directly illuminated by a ceiling light. I almost went crazy - I couldn't look at that table without my eyes flickering completely.

Of course, I went to see a doctor about it. Since I had read on the internet that this could be a precursor to a stroke, I asked him about it right away. My blood pressure was fine and he said, I was way too young and healthy for a stroke. He suggested it could be stress (I am also an extreme hypochondriac), harmless circulation disorders, or issues with my cervical spine. He told me to wait and see if it goes away on its own.

Then I went to an ophthalmologist. Visual field test, fundoscopy, retina, etc. Everything was fine! I asked him if it could be simply due to overexertion, since I have a screen in front of my eyes all day (laptop, television, or iPhone), but he said that eyes are actually designed to handle such things.

My neurologist also said he couldn't imagine it being something serious. I had a head CT scan done just 3 months ago for another issue, and everything was fine. I have now had an EEG done (hyperventilation EEG), but I won't get the results for the next few days.

This really scares me. Some days I have nothing, but this week I had it every day. Always in the evenings, as soon as it gets dark and we turn on the lights indoors. And with striped and checkered patterns. Sometimes I would rather walk around with sunglasses.

Do you have any idea what this could be?

Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Good evening,

Your neurologist is almost certainly right. A brain tumor or aneurysm has been ruled out in the CT scan, and only these could cause a stroke in a young person (exception: women who smoke and take the pill, as this can also happen).

Stress is a typical trigger for such flickering, and problems can also be exacerbated by intense screen use. The EEG will rule out rare causes such as migraine without headache (it exists, just causes visual disturbances). If everything is fine, it is time for you to take care of your mental health:

Autogenic training, Chi Gong, Yoga, meditation; or even psychotherapy for hypochondria would be sensible.

I wish you all the best!

Sincerely, Dr. Höllering, Specialist in Internal and General Medicine