What causes the foreign body sensation in acute angle closure?
When the IOP (intraocular pressure) rises during an acute angle closure attack (when the drainage angle inside eye is completely blocked due to angle-closure glaucoma), there can often be a great deal of discomfort, but patients feel that discomfort in a variety of ways. Some patients have a headache or brow ache, others have a deep, penetrating pain behind or around the eye, and others have a foreign body sensation. Foreign body sensation is usually caused by corneal edema (swelling of the cornea with fluid) which makes the corneal surface uneven. If you have these or other concerning symptoms, see your ophthalmologist as soon as possible.
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