Vesicular systems in ocular drug delivery: an overview

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Pharmaceutics
• Drug Delivery

Background:

• Achieving effective drug concentration at the ocular site is crucial for pharmacotherapeutics.
• Conventional ocular dosage forms (solutions, suspensions, ointments) exhibit poor drug bioavailability.
• Factors like tear turnover, poor absorption, and corneal impermeability limit topical ocular drug efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the limitations of conventional ocular therapy.
• To explore novel approaches for enhancing ocular drug bioavailability.
• To evaluate the advantages of vesicular drug delivery systems for ocular applications.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of conventional and novel ocular drug delivery systems.
• Analysis of factors affecting ocular drug bioavailability.
• Comparative assessment of vesicular systems against traditional formulations.

Main Results:

• Conventional ophthalmic formulations are insufficient for treating various ocular diseases.
• Novel approaches, particularly vesicular systems, show promise in improving ocular drug bioavailability.
• Vesicular systems offer advantages over conventional methods in terms of drug residence time and absorption.

Conclusions:

• Traditional ocular drug delivery methods have significant limitations.
• Vesicular drug delivery systems represent a promising strategy to enhance ocular bioavailability.
• Further research is needed to optimize vesicular systems for effective ocular therapy and overcome future challenges.