Abbreviations in prescriptions

While studying this topic you will:

• get information about common abbreviations in prescriptions;
• learn how to write prescriptions using abbreviations.

The lesson is divided into several sections:

• abbreviations of drug forms and galenical preparations;
• abbreviations of herb parts;
• abbreviations of Rx lines.

Abbreviations in prescriptions are not allowed to be used randomly. They are regulated by special documents sent by the Ministry of Health to all hospitals and pharmacies to enable some common approach.

In prescriptions abbreviations are usually made for:

• names of drug forms;
• names of parts of plants;
• standard prescription formulations: directions to a pharmacist.

They forbid to make abbreviations of plant names and of names of drugs to prevent confusion and wrong interpretation of drug names.

There are some rules for making abbreviations, they are:

• universally accepted abbreviations may be represented by the first syllable or the initial part of the word with the dot at the end: e.g.: ac., acid., — acidum (acid);
• they may include the initial letter of the word (the initial abbreviation): e.g.: M. — Misce (Mix);
• if the abbreviation includes a syllable containing several consonants, all of them are taken into it: e.g.: extr. — extractum (extract);
• sometimes the framework of a word is taken to make an abbreviation: e.g.: tct. — tinctura; dct. — decoctum; aa — ana.

Some important abbreviations to learn by heart