title: Drug delivery to the ear.
abstract: Drug delivery to the ear is used to treat conditions of the middle and inner ear such as acute and chronic otitis media, Ménière's disease, sensorineural hearing loss and tinnitus. Drugs used include antibiotics, antifungals, steroids, local anesthetics and neuroprotective agents. A literature review was conducted searching Medline (1966-2012), Embase (1988-2012), the Cochrane Library and Ovid (1966-2012), using search terms 'drug delivery', 'middle ear', 'inner ear' and 'transtympanic'. There are numerous methods of drug delivery to the middle ear, which can be categorized as topical, systemic (intravenous), transtympanic and via the Eustachian tube. Localized treatments to the ear have the advantages of targeted drug delivery allowing higher therapeutic doses and minimizing systemic side effects. The ideal scenario would be a carrier system that could cross the intact tympanic membrane loaded with drugs or biochemical agents for the treatment of middle and inner ear conditions.
authors: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, NG7 2UH, UK.
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Hoskison
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Daniel
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Al-Zahid
authors: K M
authors: KM
authors: Shakesheff
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Bayston
authors: J P
authors: JP
authors: Birchall
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000287:Administration, Topical; D000818:Animals; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D004423:Ear / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D004427:Ear Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans