Transcription
Partial list of prescription abbreviationsAbbreviationLatinMeaningaaanaof eachadadup toa.c.ante cibumbefore mealsa.d.auris dextraright earad lib.ad libitumuse as much as one alt. h.alternis horisevery other houra.m.Ante Meridiemmorning, before noonampampuleamtamountaqaquawatera.l., a.s.auris laeva, aurissinistraleft earA.T.C.around the clocka.u.auris utraqueboth earsbisbistwiceb.d./b.i.d.bis in dietwice dailyB.M.bol.bowel movementbolusas a large single dose (usuallyintravenously)B.S.blood sugarB.S.Abody surface areasBUCCinside cheekcap., caps.capsulacapsuleccumwith (usually written with a baron top of the "c")ccibosfoodcccum ciboswith food, (but also cubiccentimetre)cfwith foodcomp.compound
cr., crmcreamD5Wdextrose 5% solution(sometimes written as D5W)D5NSdextrose 5% in normal saline(0.9%)D.A.W.dispense as writtendc, D/C, discdiscontinuedieb. alt.diebus alternisevery other daydil.dilutedisp.dispensediv.divided.t.d.dentur tales dosesgive of such dosesD.W.distilled waterelix.elixire.m.p.ex modo prescripto as directedemuls.emulsumemulsionetetandex aqex aquain waterfl., fld.ft.fluidfiatmake; let it be madeggramgrgraingtt(s)gutta(e)Hdrop(s)hypodermich, hrhorahourh.s.hora somniat bedtimeIDintradermalIMintramuscular (with respect lIVintravenousIVPintravenous pushIVPBintravenous piggybackL.A.S.label as suchLCDcoal tar lotion
M.miscemixm, minminimuma minimummcgm.d.u.microgrammore dicto utendus to be used as ixmittemittesendmLnebulmillilitrenebulaN.M.T.a spraynot more thannoct.nocteat nightnon rep.non repetaturno repeatsNSnormal saline (0.9%)1/2NShalf normal saline (0.45%)N.T.E.not to exceedo 2both eyes, sometimes writtenas o2o.d.oculus dexterright eyeo.s.oculus sinisterleft eyeo.u.oculus uterqueboth eyesozounceperperby or throughp.c.post cibumafter mealsp.m.Post Meridiemevening or afternoonprnpro re nataas neededp.o.per osby mouth or orallyp.r.by rectumpulv.pulvispowderqquaqueeveryq.a.d.quoque alternis die every other dayq.a.m.quaque die antemeridiemevery day before noonq.d.s.quater diesumendusfour times a dayq.p.m.quaque die postmeridiemevery day after noonq.h.quaque horaevery hourq.h.s.quaque hora somni every night at bedtime
q.1hquaque 1 horaevery 1 hour; (can replace "1"with other numbers)q.d.quaque dieevery dayq.i.d.quater in diefour times a dayq.o.d.every other dayqqhquater quaquehoraevery four hoursq.s.quantum sufficiata sufficient quantityQWKevery weekRrectalrep., rept.repetaturRL, R/LrepeatsRinger's lactatessinewithout (usually written with abar on top of the "s")s.a.secundum artumuse your judgementSC, subc, subcut,subq, SQsubcutaneoussigwrite on labelSLsublingually, under the tonguesolsolutiosolutions.o.s., si op. sitsi opus sitif there is a needsssemisone l., teaspoont.i.d.ter in diethree times a dayt.d.s.ter die sumendumthree times a dayt.i.w.three times a weektop.topicalT.P.N.total parenteral nutritiontr, tinc., tinct.tinctureu.d., ut. dict.ut dictumas directedung.unguentumointment
U.S.P.United States years oldTo avoid ambiguity, the following abbreviations are not recommended [1] [2]: a.u., a.s., a.d. - Latin for both, left and right ears; the "a" can be misread to be an"o" and interpreted to mean both, right or left eyesbt - intended to mean "bedtime", but can be misread as "bid" or twice daily.d/c - can mean "discontinue" or "discharge"h.s. - can mean half strength or "hour of sleep"IJ - intended to mean "injection", but can be misread as "IV"IN - intended to mean "intranasal", but can be misread as "IM" or "IV"IU - intended to mean "international unit", but can be misread as "IV" or "10"o.d., o.s., o.u. - the "o" can be misread as "a".o.d. - can mean "once daily" or "right eye".OJ - intended to mean "orange juice" but can be misread as "OD" or "OS"q4PM - intended to mean "at 4 PM", but can be misread as every 4 hoursq.d., q1d - intended to mean "every day" but can be misread as "q.i.d." or 4 times adayq.o.d. - meant "every other day" but the "o" can be interpreted as "." or "i" resultingin double or eight times the frequencySC - meant "subcutaneaous" but mistaken for "SL" for "sublingual"SQ - meant "subcutaneaous" but mistaken for "5Q" or 5 every dose'ss - intended to mean "sliding scale" or "1/2", but can be mistaken as "55"'SSI, SSRI - intended to mean "sliding scale insulin" or "sliding scale regular insulin",but can be mistaken as "strong solution of iodine" or "selective serotonin reuptakeinhibitorT.I.W - meant 3 times a week but mistaken for twice a weekU - meant "units" but mistaken for "0", "4" (so "4U" can become "40" and the "U" isassumed), or misread as "cc" when poorly written; conversely cc can be mistakenfor "U"μg - meant "microgram" but mistaken for "mg"; this 1000-fold error can causepotentially fatal misunderstandingsNotice that SID or S.I.D. is not a recognized abbreviation andshould not be used.
OJ - intended to mean "orange juice" but can be misread as "OD" or "OS" q4PM - intended to mean "at 4 PM", but can be misread as every 4 hours q.d., q1d - intended to mean "every day" but can be misread as "q.i.d." or 4 times a day q.o.d. - meant "every other day" but
