Which type of glaucoma is associated with acute and painful symptoms?

• A. Open-angle glaucoma
• B. Closed-angle glaucoma
• C. Normal tension glaucoma
• D. Secondary glaucoma

Answer: (B)

Acute angle-closure glaucoma causes a sudden rise in intraocular pressure because the iris blocks the drainage angle, abruptly stopping the outflow of aqueous humor. This rapid pressure buildup triggers intense eye pain, redness, halos around lights, blurred vision, headache, and sometimes nausea or vomiting. The eye often feels hard to touch and the onset is a true emergency, requiring prompt medical treatment to lower pressure and reopen the drainage angle (often with medications followed by laser peripheral iridotomy).

Open-angle glaucoma tends to be a gradual, usually painless loss of peripheral vision over time rather than an abrupt, painful event. Normal tension glaucoma involves optic nerve damage at normal intraocular pressures. Secondary glaucoma results from another condition or factor, and its presentation varies.