This is a photo of a retinal hole taken from my slit lamp camera. There is an “operculum” that used to be where you see the hole. This operculum is the white floating object below the hole. If you look close the operculum casts a shadow on the retina.
Retina holes can lead to retina detachments. In this case, it appears that this hole has been around a long time. It is likely that some retina specialists would just watch this without treatment. Others would treat it.
Since it is an old one that is inferior, this one doesn’t need to be seen by the retina specialist on an emergency basis. I am, however, having this patient see the retina specialist within a few weeks to see if he wants to laser it. Lasering around the hole or using cryotherapy (freezing), essentially welds the retina down to prevent it from becoming a detachment.