Frequently Asked Questions Q1. What are ophthalmic preparations?
Answer: Ophthalmic preparations (eye preparations) are sterile, liquid, semi-solid, or solid preparations that may contain one or more active pharmaceutical ingredient(s) intended for application to the eyes (conjunctiva, the conjunctival sac or the eyelids). The different categories of ophthalmic preparations include drops consisting of emulsions, solutions or suspensions, and ointments. Ophthalmic preparations should maintain their integrity throughout their shelf-life when stored at the temperature indicated on the label. Special storage recommendations or limitations are indicated in individual monographs.

Q2. What are the important instructions that should be remembered while administering such preparations?
Answer: The eye is extremely sensitive and is easily irritated if the composition of the ophthalmic preparation is not appropriate. Eye drops come in single use containers and in multiple dose bottles. Multidose eye drops labelling instruction recommends - To be use within one month (30 days) after opening the container which needs to be followed carefully as they are sterile formulations, but as soon as patients open the bottle for first time, the formulation get exposed to external environment and have high chance of contamination. Moreover, inadvertently dropper tips often touch the eyelids or countertops during use and can contaminate the bottle with bacteria. Preservatives are added to a certain quantity to prevent the solution from external and in inadvertent contamination only up to 30 days. So patient should discard any unused eye drop after 30 days.
Therefore a kind note from PSM Desk that next time you use eye drop/ointment, be careful and diligent in following every instructions as eyes are un-doubted the most vital part of our body.