CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN OPHTHALMIC INSERT DEVELOPMENT: A PROMISING APPROACH TO OCULAR DRUG DELIVERY

Ophthalmic inserts are new technologies that seek to improve medication uptake and management of some eye conditions by offering a constant therapeutic level. The anatomy of the eye has been integrated with the system, making the administration of drugs a much more challenging hurdle for the transducer to overcome. There is a barrier within the eye tissues known as the blood-retinal barrier, which limits contact to the area and makes medication poorly bioavailable. In addition, the cornea is most likely physiologically impermeable through the topical route. Therefore, to distribute drugs to the posterior segment involves retaining systems or employing special devices to hold the drug for an extended time. Devices such as microneedles or iontophoresis cause pain during delivery, so painless methods, which involve ophthalmic or ocular inserts, are preferable. Their residence time or contact time with the drug is long, and therefore, bioavailability is enhanced through steady or controlled release. The different ocular inserts, their composition, and the polymers that go into making them are all covered in this article. Types of ocular inserts, such as insoluble, soluble, and bio-erodible inserts, are explained briefly. Also, the general excipients used to prepare the inserts, and their description have been included. The regulatory landscape for ophthalmic inserts also presents hurdles, as they are classified as drug-device combination products, necessitating compliance with pharmaceutical and medical device regulations, which can extend approval timelines and increase development costs.

Keywords: Contact lens, minidisc, ocular, ophthalmic inserts, SODI.