A Guide to Pharmacy Abbreviations

Once you have decided to be a Pharmacist you will be reading a lot of prescriptions. All of these prescriptions are not well written and majority of them uses a lot of abbreviations.

 If you are a student you might be well aware of the abbreviations as they are often asked in exams and terms in Pharmacy schools and colleges.

Later one when we step behind the counter for refilling these prescriptions we might face a lot of difficulty to understand what a doctor wants to write for his patient.

 All of these abbreviations can be learnt in an easy way but with a practice and always double checking with Pharmacists in charge. For a head start you can refer to the table below.

 This can be taken as a beginner's guide for fresh pharmacy graduates, technicians, nurses to help them understand for a proper medicine administration.

Pharmacy Prescription Abbreviations 

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
aa	of each	Derived from Latin, ana
AAA	apply to affected area
a.c.	before meals	Derived from Latin, ante cibum
a.d.	right ear	Derived from Latin, auris dextra
ad lib.	as much as desired; freely	Derived from Latin, ad libitum (“at one’s pleasure”)
a.m.	morning; before noon	Derived from Latin, ante meridiem
amp.	ampule
amt.	amount
APAP	acetaminophen
aq.	water	Derived from Latin, aqua
a.s.	left ear	Derived from Latin, auris sinistra
ATC	around the clock
a.u.	both ears	Derived from Latin, auris utraque
bib.	drink	Derived from Latin, bibe
b.i.d.	twice a day	Derived from Latin, bis in die
BP	blood pressure
bucc.	inside cheek	Derived from Latin, bucca
c.	with	Derived from Latin, cum; often written with a bar above it
cc	cubic centimeter (cm3)	Less commonly used as an abbreviation for cum cibo (“with food”)
cap.	capsule
cm	centimeter	Also used as an abbreviation for cream
d.	day	Derived from Latin, dies
DAW	dispense as written
d.c.; d/c	discontinue
dil.	dilute
disp.	dispense
div.	divide
dL	deciliter
DR	delayed-release
EC	enteric-coated
EOD	every other day
ER; XR	extended-release
et	and	Derived from Latin, et
f., ft.	make; let it be made	Derived from Latin, fiat
fl.	fluid
FXD	for 10 days	X = Roman numeral for 10
g, gm	gram
gal	gallon
gr.	grain
gtt.	drop	Derived from Latin, gutta
h., hr., hor.	hour	Derived from Latin, hora
HCT; HCTZ	hydrochlorothiazide
h.s.	at bedtime	Derived from Latin, hora somni (“at the hour of sleep”)
ID	intradermal
IM	intramuscular
IN	intranasal
inf.	infusion
inh.	inhalation
inj.	injection
IR	immediate-release
IU	international unit
IV	intravenous
K	potassium
kg	kilogram
L	liter
lb	pound	Derived from Latin, libra
liq.	liquid
lot.	lotion
m	meter
max.	maximum
mcg; μg	microgram	μ = Greek letter mu
MDP	Medrol Dosepak	Pre-dosed packaging of methylprednisolone (Medrol)
mg	milligram
min.	minimum
mL	milliliter
mm	millimeter
neb.	nebulizer
NSAID	nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug	Drug class that includes ibuprofen (Motrin)
o.d.	right eye	Derived from Latin, oculus dexter
ODT	oral disintegrating tablet
oint.	ointment
o.s.	left eye	Derived from Latin, oculus sinister
OTC	over the counter
o.u.	both eyes	Derived from Latin, oculus uterque
oz	ounce
PA	prior authorization
p.c.	after meals	Derived from Latin, post cibum
p.m.	evening; after noon	Derived from Latin, post meridiem
p.o.	by mouth; orally	Derived from Latin, per os
p.r.	rectally	Derived from Latin, per rectum
p.r.n.	as needed (for)	Derived from Latin, pro re nata
pt	pint
p.v.	vaginally	Derived from Latin, per vaginam
q	every; per	Derived from Latin, quaque
q12; q. 12 h.; q12°	every 12 hours	12 can be substituted with any number
q1-2; q. 1-2 h.; q1-2°	every 1 to 2 hours	1 and 2 can be substituted with any number
q.a.d.; q.o.d.	every other day	Derived from Latin, quaque alternis die
q.a.m.	every morning; every day before noon	Derived from Latin, quaque anti meridiem
q.d.	every day	Derived from Latin, quaque die
q.h.s.	every day at bedtime	Derived from Latin, quaque hora somni
q.i.d.	4 times a day	Dervied from Latin, quater in die
qt	quart
qty.	quantity
q.p.m.	every evening; every day after noon	Derived from Latin, quaque post meridiem
q.s.	a sufficient quantity	Derived from Latin, quantum sufficiat
q.w.	every week
Rx	prescription	Derived from Latin, recipere (‘to take”)
s.	without	Derived from Latin, sine; often written with a bar above it
SC; SQ; SubQ	subcutaneous
sig.	write; label	Derived from Latin, signa
SL; s.l.	sublingually; under the tongue
SOB	shortness of breath
sol.	solution
SSRI	selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor	Drug class that includes escitalopram (Lexapro) and fluoxetine (Prozac)
stat.	immediately	Derived from Latin, statim
supp.	suppository
susp.	suspension
syr.	syrup
tab.	tablet
TAD	take as directed
tbsp	tablespoon
t.i.d.	3 times a day	Derived from Latin, ter in die
top.	topical
troch.	lozenge	Derived from Latin, trochiscus
tsp	teaspoon
U	unit
u.d., ut. dict.	as directed	Derived from Latin, ut dictum
ung.	ointment	Derived from Latin, unguentum
w.	with
w/f	with food; with meals
w/o	without

If you like to add more medical pharmacy abbreviations in this chart feel free to message us on Facebook or Comment on this post.