(Survival manual/6. Medical/c) General clinic/Abbreviations used in medical prescriptions)
This is a list of abbreviations used in medical prescriptions (sometimes referred to as sig codes). This listing does not include abbreviations for actual pharmaceuticals (which is a separate article in itself). Capitalization and the use of periods is a matter of style. In the attached list, Latin is not capitalized whereas English acronyms are. The period is used wherever there are letters omitted in the abbreviation.
Abbreviations which are officially not to be used in the United States (as required by the Joint Commission) are marked in blue letters. Those abbreviations which are discouraged from use by other organizations are lettered in orange.
List of abbreviations used in medical prescriptions
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_abbreviations_used_in_medical_prescriptions
| Abbreviation | Latin | Meaning | Possible confusion |
| aa | ana | of each | |
| ad | ad | up to | |
| a.c. | ante cibum | before meals | |
| a.d. | auris dextra | right ear | “a” can be mistaken as an “o” which could read “o.d.”, meaning right eye |
| ad lib. | ad libitum | use as much as one desires; freely | |
| admov. | admove | apply | |
| agit | agita | stir/shake | |
| alt. h. | alternis horis | every other hour | |
| a.m. | ante 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 | |
| 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 | ||
| 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[3]) | |
| 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. | by rectum | ||
| PRN, prn | pro re nata | as needed | |
| pulv. | pulvis | powder | |
| PV | per vaginam | via the vagina | |
| q | quaque | every | |
| q.a.d. | quoque 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.1h, 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 | 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 | ambiguous meaning; mistaken for “55” or “1/2” |
| SSI, SSRI | sliding scale insulin or sliding scale regular insulin | mistaken to mean “strong solution of iodine” or “selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor” | |
| 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 | ||
| 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 | |
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