[Eye-drops from olden times to the XIXth century]

The Spanish word "colirio" comes from the Latin collyrium, which in turn came from the Greek kollirion. Initially, the Romans use this word in a general way, but due to their use mainly in ophthalmology, the use of the term became restricted to those topical medications destined for the care and prevention of ocular diseases, from solutions and suspensions to poultices, salves and ointments. During the Middle Ages "colirio" included not only substances used to dilate ladies' pupils for aesthetic reasons but also medications for ocular hygiene and treatment. The Industrial Revolution of the XIXth century barely modified ophthalmic pharmaceutical technology. It is only since the World War II that the preparation of eye-drops has undergone a rapid development and improvement, adopting the concept of sterility as a necessary condition for all ophthalmic solutions and taking very precise rules for their elaboration and conditioning from different pharmacopeia.