An oil-in-water emulsion solvent evaporation technique has been used to prepare poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) microparticles and the effect of various process parameters on particle size has been investigated. Particles of below 3-mu-m mean particle size were prepared by using a relatively small amount of polymer, a high stirring rate and a low volume of aqueous phase containing a high concentration of surfactant.