The collaboration between pharmacologist and optometrist has produced a work which gives a theoretical basis for the application of drugs, an emphasis on care and discrimination in the use of drugs, and guidance on many key practical issues such as the use of mydriatic and miotic agents. This new edition takes account of the developments which have taken place in pharmaceutical science and optometric practice over the past few years: a comprehensive survey is given of recent contact lens preparations; there is a concise outline of developments in drugs used by ophthalmologists that are relevant to optometry; a review of ocular adverse reactions to systemic and topical medications which should assist the optometrist in the detection, management and reporting of these conditions; readers will be introduced to the principles of the use of therapeutic drugs, now already a feature of optometric practice in many parts of the USA. A chapter on microbiology has been included because the advent of diseases such as AIDS and acanthamoeba has highlighted a requirement for some knowledge in this area.