Medical Prescription Terms

Commonly used medical prescription terms and their meaning that you should know.

Frequency or time of drug usage:

• QID / QDS: 4 times a day (about 6 hourly)
• TID / TDS: 3 times a day (about 8 hourly)
• BID / BD: twice a day (about 12 hourly)
• OD: once a day
• HS: once at night / bedtime
• SOS: whenever required
• q2h: every 2 hours
• q4h: every 4 hours, etc.
• CM: coming morning
• Stat: once immediately

Type of medicine preparation:

• Tab: Tablet
• Cap: Capsule
• Inj: Injection
• Oint or oc: Ointment
• G or ED: Eye Drops
• ND: Nasal Drops
• Lot: Lotion
• Cream: Skin cream
• Suppository: per rectal application
• Pessary: per vaginal application

Routes of administration:

• PO: per orally or by mouth
• Topically: local application on affected area
• IM: intra-muscularly
• IV: intra-venously
• SC: sub-cutaneously or just under the skin
• PR: per rectal or into the anus
• PV: per vaginum or into the vagina
• Inhalation: to be inhaled as puffs
• Nebulize: to be atomized or nebulized using a special equipment & then inhaled with breathing
• Sub conj: just under the conjunctiva (surface layer) of the eye
• Intra Vit: intra-vitreally or into the vitreous cavity of the eye
• Intra-cameral: into the anterior chamber of the eye
• Sub-tenon: under the Tenon layer / space of the eye surface
• Retro-bulbar: behind the eye ball
• Intra-articular: into the joint space
• Spinal / Sub-dural: into the spaces of vertebral spine

Other common terms:

• NPO: nil per orally
• F: fasting
• PP: post-prandial or after meal (in relation to blood sugar measurement it means 2 hours after meal)
• Infusion: slow intra-venous administration

If there is any other confusing term that you may want to understand, please mention in the comments.

Dr. Sanjay Dhawan

Senior Eye Surgeon

New Delhi & Gurgaon

India