Abstract: The invention concerns the use of a preparation based on prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) as active ingredient in a carrier suitable for administration on the skin or on the mucous membranes, for the treatment by the transdermal or transmucosal route of acute or chronic ophthalmic pathologies of an ischemic nature, and in general for the treatment of ophthalmic pathologies involving at least in part an ischemic mechanism of the ocular district. By applying PGE1 on the skin, particularly in the form of a cream, it is possible to avoid the drawbacks of the intravenous administration of the drug, while still maintaining a comparable level of absorption of the drug in the ocular district. By suitably modulating the dosage, it is possible to obtain in the eye, by the cutaneous administration of PGE1, the same clinical results that can be obtained by intravenous administration.