Emerging drugs for ocular allergy.
Ocular allergy is a common condition that usually affects the conjunctiva of the eye and is, therefore, often referred to as allergic conjunctivitis. The severity of the disease can range from mild itching and redness, as seen in seasonal allergic conjunctivitis, to the more severe, sight-threatening forms such as vernal and atopic keratoconjunctivitis. The central mechanism in the pathogenesis of these diseases is IgE-mediated mast cell degranulation and activation of T lymphocytes, eosinophils and conjunctival structural cells. The pharmacotherapy of allergic conjunctivitis consists of several classes of drugs: antihistamines, mast cell stabilisers, dual-acting agents and corticosteroids. None of the available drugs completely abolishes the development of ocular allergy. For this reason, new topical antiallergic/anti-inflammatory agents are currently and continually under clinical trials. This review provides a background to ocular allergic diseases, the medical need for therapy and current and potential new treatments.
Leonardi
Andrea
A
Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Via Giustiniani 2, 35128 Padova, Italy. andrea.leonardi@unipd.it
D000818:Animals; D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000639:trends; D003233:Conjunctivitis, Allergic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D013678:Technology, Pharmaceutical / Q000639:trends*
D018926:Anti-Allergic Agents