Oculotoxicities of systemically administered drugs.

There have been many drugs reported to cause oculotoxic responses after their systemic administration. The severity of these toxicities range from minor ocular inconvenience to permanent loss of vision. This paper reviews the current literature and attempts to suggest some probable factors involved in the development of oculotoxicities by systemic drugs. Various drug entry and exit pathways in the eye are presented and the role of some intraocular structures in the toxicity development is examined. The issues of melanin binding, genetic heterogeneity, photosensitivity and environmental pollution are discussed.