Metamorphopsia
Metamorphopsia is the medical word for seeing straight lines as wavy or bent. It is a symptom, not a disease.
Updated November 13, 2026 · General information, not medical advice.
What metamorphopsia is
With metamorphopsia, things that are straight look distorted: a door frame bows, lines of text ripple, tiles look uneven. It usually affects one eye and is easiest to notice with the other eye covered. On an Amsler grid it shows as wavy, bent or kinked lines.
Related words
| Word | Meaning | On the grid |
|---|---|---|
| Metamorphopsia | Distorted shapes | Wavy or bent lines |
| Micropsia | Things look smaller than they are | Squares look squeezed together |
| Macropsia | Things look larger than they are | Squares look stretched |
| Scotoma | A blind or dim spot | A dark, gray or missing patch |
See drawings of each in the distortion examples.
What causes it
Metamorphopsia nearly always comes from the macula. Anything that lifts, swells or wrinkles the macula moves its light-sensing cells out of their regular pattern. Causes include wet macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, macular pucker, macular hole, central serous retinopathy and swelling after a vein blockage. The full list, with what to do, is in wavy lines on the Amsler grid.
Why a blind spot can go unnoticed
The brain fills in small gaps in vision with the surrounding pattern. A small scotoma on a regular grid can be painted over with grid lines that are not really seen, which is one reason the Amsler grid misses some defects. Distortion is harder for the brain to hide, so wavy lines are often noticed before a blank spot.
When it is urgent
New metamorphopsia needs an eye exam right away, the same day if you can. It can be the first sign of wet macular degeneration, where early treatment protects sight.
Long-standing, stable distortion, for example from a macular pucker your doctor is watching, is not an emergency. Report any change in it.
Can it be treated?
Treatment is aimed at the cause: injections for wet macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema, surgery for some macular puckers and holes, and time for many cases of central serous retinopathy. Distortion often improves when the macula flattens, though it does not always go away completely. Your eye doctor can tell you what to expect in your case.