Normally, fluid is continually secreted into the front of the eye by a structure called the ciliary body to nourish the tissues and maintain the shape of the eye. Any excess fluid drains away through a gap called the drainage angle.
In glaucoma, the flow of fluid is blocked and the fluid builds up, raising pressure in the eye and leading to impaired vision or even blindness.
Acute glaucoma develops quickly, causing pain and sudden loss of vision. It requires emergency treatment with drugs or surgery. Chronic glaucoma develops more slowly, is painless, and may go unnoticed for years until it eventually causes significant deterioration of vision.
Both types of glaucoma are treated with medication or surgery. Treatment usually prevents further visual loss but does not restore any vision already lost.

Othere related diseases

CONJUNCTIVITIS
Conjunctivitis is inflammation of the conjunctiva (the clear membrane covering the white of the eye), causing redness— hence its common name “red eye”— ...

EARWAX
Also called cerumen, earwax is produced by glands in the outer ear canal to clean and moisten the canal. Normally, the wax emerges naturally, but sometimes it b...

ECTROPION AND ENTROPION
Ectropion is a turning outward of the lower eyelid. The eyelid’s exposed inner surface becomes dry and sore, and the eye may water continuously. Because the e...

EUSTACHIAN TUBE DYSFUNCTION
The Eustachian tube, running from the middle ear to the back of the nose, acts as a drainage tube and also regulates pressure in the middle ear. In Eustachian t...

FOCUSING PROBLEMS
Farsightedness Nearsightedness Astigmatism Focusing an image sharply on the retina (the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye) depends mainly on the len...

GLAUCOMA
Normally, fluid is continually secreted into the front of the eye by a structure called the ciliary body to nourish the tissues and maintain the shape of the ey...

LABYRINTHITIS
Labyrinthitis is inflammation of the labyrinth of the inner ear, which contains the organs of hearing and balance. It is usually caused by a bacterial or viral ...

MACULAR DEGENERATION
Macular degeneration (also known as age-related macular degeneration, or AMD) is a deterioration of the macula, the central area of the retina responsible for s...