1 May 2026Drugs for external use and antiseptics
Pilocarpine, eye drops
Pilocarpine eye-drop guidance for chronic open-angle glaucoma, with long-term dosing and retinal precautions.
Prescription under medical supervision
This guide page is for structured reference only and does not replace a clinician, pharmacist, or emergency review. Dose choice, route choice, interactions, and safety decisions still need professional judgment.
Therapeutic action
Cholinergic anti-glaucoma agent, miotic.
Indications
Chronic open-angle glaucoma.
Forms and strengths
2% eye drops.
Also comes in 4% eye drops.
Dose
Adult: 1 drop into the conjunctival sac 4 times daily.
Duration
Life-long treatment.
Contra-indications, adverse effects, precautions
- Do not administer to children.
- Do not administer to patients with iridocyclitis and some forms of secondary glaucoma.
- Do not administer to patients with history of retinal detachment (trauma or family history) nor to myopic patients, except if it is possible to examine the peripheral retina (fundus examination) prior to the initiation of therapy and routinely thereafter.
- May cause transient blurred vision, visual field modification, difficulty with dark adaptation, retinal detachment in patients with myopia, ocular irritation, headache, and rarely allergic reactions.
- In case of treatment with another eye drop, wait 5 minutes before instilling the second eye drop treatment.
- Patients should have regular monitoring of intraocular pressure during therapy.
- Pregnancy: no contra-indication.
- Breast-feeding: no contra-indication.
Source
MSF Essential drugs practical guidelines (January 2026)
This page reproduces the structured reference information for this batch while leaving out the Storage and Remarks sections.
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