List of Abbreviations Used in Medical Prescriptions

List Of Abbreviations Used In Medical Prescriptions

nte meridiem morning, before noon amp ampule amt amount aq aqua water a.l., a.s. auris laeva, auris sinistra left ear "a" can be mistaken as an "o" which could read "o.s." or "o.l", meaning left eye A.T.C. around the clock a.u. auris utraque both ears "a" can be mistaken as an "o" which could read "o.u.", meaning both eyes bis bis twice b.d./b.i.d. bis in die twice daily B.M. bowel movement BNF British National Formulary bol. bolus as a large single dose (usually intravenously) B.S. blood sugar B.S.A body surface areas b.t. bedtime mistaken for "b.i.d", meaning twice daily BUCC bucca inside cheek cap., caps. capsula capsule c, c. cum with (usually written with a bar on top of the "c") cib. cibus food cc cum cibo with food, (but also cubic centimetre) mistaken for "U", meaning units; also has an ambiguous meaning; use "mL" or "milliliters" cf with food comp. compound cr., crm cream CST Continue same treatment D5W dextrose 5% solution (sometimes written as D₅W) D5NS dextrose 5% in normal saline (0.9%) D.A.W. dispense as written (i.e., no generic substitution) dc, D/C, disc discontinue or discharge ambiguous meaning dieb. alt. diebus alternis every other day dil. dilute disp. dispersible or dispense div. divide d.t.d. dentur tales doses give of such doses DTO deodorized tincture of opium can easily be confused with "diluted tincture of opium," which is 1/25th the strength of deodorized tincture of opium; deaths have resulted due to massive morphine overdose D.W. distilled water elix. elixir e.m.p. ex modo prescripto as directed emuls. emulsum emulsion et et and eod every other day ex aq ex aqua in water fl., fld. fluid ft. fiat make; let it be made g gram gr grain gtt(s) gutta(e) drop(s) H hypodermic h, hr hora hour h.s. hora somni at bedtime h.s hour sleep or half-strength ambiguous meaning ID intradermal IJ, inj injectio injection mistaken for "IV", meaning intravenously IM intramuscular (with respect to injections) IN intranasal mistaken for "IM", meaning intramuscular, or "IV", meaning intravenously IP intraperitoneal IU international unit mistaken for "IV" or "10", spell out "international unit" IV intravenous IVP intravenous push IVPB intravenous piggyback L.A.S. label as such LCD coal tar solution lin linimentum liniment liq liquor solution lot. lotion mane mane in the morning M. misce mix m, min minimum a minimum mcg microgram may be confused with "mg" m.d.u. more dicto utendus to be used as directed mEq milliequivalent mg milligram MgSO4 magnesium sulfate may be confused with "MSO4", spell out "magnesium sulfate" mist. mistura mix mitte mitte send mL millilitre MS morphine sulfate or magnesium sulfate can mean either morphine sulfate or magnesium sulfate, spell out either MSO4 morphine sulfate may be confused with "MgSO4", spell out "morphine sulfate" nebul nebula a spray N.M.T. not more than noct. nocte at night non rep. non repetatur no repeats NS normal saline (0.9%) 1/2NS half normal saline (0.45%) N.T.E. not to exceed o_2 both eyes, sometimes written as o₂ od omne in die every day/once daily (preferred to qd in the UK) od oculus dexter right eye "o" can be mistaken as an "a" which could read "a.d.", meaning right ear, confusion with omne in die om omne mane every morning on omne nocte every night o.p.d. once per day o.s. oculus sinister left eye "o" can be mistaken as an "a" which could read "a.s.", meaning left ear o.u. oculus uterque both eyes "o" can be mistaken as an "a" which could read "a.u.", meaning both ears oz ounce per per by or through p.c. post cibum after meals pig./pigm. pigmentum paint p.m. post meridiem evening or afternoon p.o. per os by mouth or orally p.r. per rectum by rectum PRN, prn pro re nata as needed pulv. pulvis powder PV per vaginam via the vagina q quaque every, per q.a.d. quaque alternis die every other day q.a.m. quaque die ante meridiem every day before noon q.d.s. quater die sumendus four times a day can be mistaken for "qd" (every day) q.p.m. quaque die post meridiem every day after noon q.h. quaque hora every hour q.h.s. quaque hora somni every night at bedtime q.1 h, q.1° quaque 1 hora every 1 hour; (can replace "1" with other numbers) q.d., q1d quaque die every day mistaken for "QOD" or "qds", spell out "every day" or "daily" q.i.d. quater in die four times a day q4PM at 4pm mistaken to mean every four hours q.o.d. every other day mistaken for "QD", spell out "every other day" qqh quater quaque hora every four hours q.s. quantum sufficiat a sufficient quantity QWK every week R rectal rep., rept. repetatur repeats RL, R/L Ringer's lactate s sine without (usually written with a bar on top of the "s") s.a. secundum artum use your judgement SC, subc, subcut, subq, SQ subcutaneous "SC" can be mistaken for "SL", meaning sublingual; "SQ" can be mistaken for "5Q" meaning five every dose sig signa write on label SL sublingually, under the tongue sol solutio solution s.o.s., si op. sit si opus sit if there is a need ss semis one half or sliding scale s.i.d/SID semel in die once a day used exclusively in veterinary medicine

SSI, SSRI sliding scale insulin or sliding scale regular insulin mistaken to mean "strong solution of iodine" or "selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor" SNRI (antidepressant) Serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor SSRI (antidepressant) selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor

(a specific class of antidepressant)

stat statim immediately supp suppositorium suppository susp suspension syr syrupus syrup tab tabella tablet tal., t talus such tbsp tablespoon troche trochiscus lozenge t.d.s. ter die sumendum three times a day t.i.d. ter in die three times a day t.i.w. three times a week mistaken for twice a week top. topical T.P.N. total parenteral nutrition tr, tinc., tinct. tincture tsp teaspoon U unit mistaken for a "4", "0" or "cc", spell out "unit" μg microgram mistaken for "mg", meaning milligram u.d., ut. dict. ut dictum as directed ung. unguentum ointment U.S.P. United States Pharmacopoeia vag vaginally w with w/a while awake wf with food (with meals) w/o without X times Y.O. years old

List of symbols used in prescriptions

Symbols Latin Meaning Possible confusion @ at mistaken for "2"; spell out "at" > greater than mistaken for a "7" < less than mistaken for an "L" ℞ take, take this, or take thus prescription drug