Articles

Because of the generally urgent need for treatment of bacterial keratitis with sterile ophthalmic antibiotic solution, the authors investigated whether or not ticarcillin ophthalmic solution could be prepared in advance and stored frozen so as to be available for immediate use. A 5 mg/mL ticarcillin ophthalmic solution was prepared using injectable ticarcillin and 0.9% sodium chloride. One set of samples was frozen (-20 oC) for 9 weeks, thawed at room temperature and then stored for 15 days at either 4 oC or 25 oC. Additional sets of samples was stored at 4 oC or 25 oC for 15 days. Samples were stored with or without protection from light. Physical and chemical analyses which were conducted at specified times included testing for ticarcillin content using reverse-phase liquid chromatographic methods and osmolarity, pH and sterility testing. The ticarcillin solution was found to retain more than 90% of its initial concentration for 3 days, when stored at 25 oC , or for 7 days if stored at 4 oC . The stability of the solution was unaffected by prior freezing or exposure to light.

originally published.