Preclinical ocular evaluation of noncorticosteroidal antiinflammatory agents.

The nature of inflammation in general and the special aspects of ocular inflammation are discussed. Causes of inflammation, the cellular and tissue response to noxious stimuli and the biochemical mediation of the inflammatory response are described. Prostaglandins and their relatives the thromboxanes and prostacyclins are shown to play an important role in the mediation of ocular inflammation. Inhibitors of the biochemical synthesis of prostaglandins show strong potential for use in topical ocular antiinflammatory therapy, however their preclinical evaluation requires the choice of a suitable animal model. A review of animals of both specific and general ocular inflammation is presented.