Ocular anatomy and physiology

Lens, A. (1999), Ocular Anatomy and Physiology, Slack, New York. 

Robinson, J. C. (1993), Ocular anatomy and physiology relevant to ocular drug delivery, in Mitra, A. K., Ed., Ophthalmic Drug Delivery Systems, Marcel Dekker, New York, pp. 

As some readers with no special knowledge in ocular anatomy and physiology may read this chapter, it seems necessary to begin it with a few reminders. 

Stjernschantz, J., M. Astin. 1993. Anatomy and physiology of the eye. Pathophysiological aspects of drug delivery. In Biopharmaceutics of Ocular Drug delivery, vol. 5, ed. P. Edman, 1. London CRC Press. 

Due to the accessibility of the eye surface, topical administration of ophthalmic medications is the most common method for treating conditions affecting the exterior eye surface. However, the unique anatomy and physiology of the eye renders it difficult to achieve an effective drug concentration at the target site. Therefore, efficient delivery of a drug past the protective ocular barriers accompanied with minimization of its systemic side effects remains a major challenge. 

Stjernschantz, J., and Astin, M. (1993), Anatomy and physiology of the eye. Physiological aspects of ocular drug therapy, in Edman, P., Ed., Biopharmaceutics of Ocular Drug Delivery, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, pp. 1-25. 

The development of these new ODDS is not possible without the use of the adequate polymeric materials. This work describes the synthetic polymers most used until now in the preparation of ODDS and provides a few examples of how they are being used. For contextualization, this presentation is preceded by a brief overview of the anatomy and physiology of the eye, the possible routes for ocular drug delivery, and the natural barriers that Umit the access of drugs to the anterior segment tissues. 

Drug delivery to the eye is not an easy assignment, due to its unique anatomy and physiology, since the ocular tissue barriers limit the access of drugs to their targets, especially to the posterior segment [5,6]. 

This chapter describes the synthetic polymers presently most used in preparation of ocular drug delivery systems. For contextualization, this presentation is preceded by a brief overview of the anatomy and physiology of the eye, pathways, and barriers in ocular drug delivery. 

Monteiro-Riviere, N. A. Comparative anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry of mammalian skin. In Hobson, D. W. (Eds.). Dermal and Ocular Toxicology Fundamentals and Methods, CRC Press, New York, 1991, Chapter 1, pp. 3-71. 

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