understanding prescription abbreviations

Prescription Abbreviations are often known as Sig Codes which are very important for a Pharmacist to remember. Doctors or Medical Practitioners use these abbreviations or sig codes in the prescription. Nowadays most Doctors use electronic prescriptions so the uses of these abbreviations are reduced highly. But it is very important for the Pharmacy school students or pharmacy technicians or pharmacists to learn and remember these codes as they are a Very Important part of the Pharmacy study. In this post, we have shared a master list of these abbreviations so it could help you a lot. We have also shared important books and important study notes you should also check them out.

Master List of Prescription Abbreviations (Sig Codes)

List of All Prescription Abbreviations or Sig Codes

There are more than 120+ abbreviations are used while a prescription is being written, some of them are used very commonly and some of them are used very rarely. We here made the list of all the abbreviations that are used while writing a prescription. All abbreviations are classified into different categories like Drug Dosage Form, Measurement, Route of Administration and Time so you can find them accordingly.

Prescription Abbreviations or Sig Codes used for Drug Dosage Form

Abbreviations	Meaning	Latin Term
aq, aqua	Water
caps	Capsules
cm	Cream
elix	Elixirs
Liq	Liquid
SR, XR, XL	Slow or Extend Release
supp	Suppositories
syr	Syrups
tab	Tablets
susp	suspension	suspensio
ung., oint.	Ointments
pulv	Powder	pulvis
pil	Pills	pilula
past	Paste	pasta
neb	Nasal Spray	nebula
narist	Nasal Drop	naristillae

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Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes used for Route of Administration

Abbreviation	Meaning
a.d.	Right ear
a.s., a.l.	Left ear
a.u.	Each ear
i.m., IM	Intramuscular
i.v., IV	Intravenous
i.v.p., IVP	Intravenous push
inj.	Injection
IVPB	Intravenous piggyback
o.d.	Right eye
o.s., o.l.	Left eye
o.u.	Each eye
p.o.	By mouth
p.r.	Rectally
p.v.	Vaginally
per neb	By nebulizer
S.L.	Sublingually, under the tongue
SC, subc, subq	Subcutaneously
top.	Topically

Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes used for Time

Abbreviation	Meaning
a.c.	Before food, before meals
a.m.	Morning
b.i.d., bid, bd	Twice a day
h	Hour, at the hour of
h.s.	At bedtime
p.c.	After food, after meals
p.m.	Afternoon, evening
p.r.n., prn	As needed
q	each, every
q.d.	Every day
q.h	Every hour
q.i.d., qid	Four times a day
qod	Every other day
Stat.	Immediately
t.i.d., tid, tds	Three times a day
ieb. alt.	every other day, on alternate days
noct.	at night
omn. bih.	every 2 hours
omn. hor.	every hour
q.i.d.	4 times a day

Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes used for Measurement

Abbreviation	Meaning
tsp.	Teaspoon
tbsp.	Tablespoon
or ss	one-half
	one
a.a., aa	of each
ad	to, up to
aq. ad	add water up to
dil.	dilute
div.	divide
f, fl.	Fluid
fl. oz.	Fluid ounce
g., G., gm.	Gram
gtt.	Drop
l, L	Liter/Litre
mcg.	Microgram
mEq	milliequivalent
mg.	Milligram
ml., mL	Milliliter/Millilitre
q.s.	A sufficient quantity
q.s. ad	Add sufficient quantity to make

Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes used for Numbers

Roman	English	Latin
I	one	Unus
II	two	Duo
III	three	Tres
IV	four	Quatuor
V	five	Quinque
VI	six
VII	seven	septem
VIII	eight	octe
IX	nine	novem
X	ten	decem
XI	eleven	undecem
XV	fifteen	quindecim
XX	twenty	viginti
L	fifty	quinguaginta
C	one hunderd	centum

Other Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes

Abbreviation	Meaning
	without
c	With
disp.	Dispense
f, ft.	Make, Let it be made
NR	No refill
sig.	Label, write
ut dict., u.d.	As directed
s.o.s	when needed
NMT	not more than
da	give
D5W, DEW	dextrose 5% in water (intravenous sugar solution)
D5NS	dextrose 5% in normal saline (0.9%) (intravenous sugаr solution)
D5LR	dextrose 5% in lactated Ringer’s solution(intravenous sugаr solution)
D10W, D₁₀W	dextrose 10% in water intravenous sugar solution)
cochl	spoonful
C.V.	tomorrow evening
c.n.	tomorrow night
c.m.	tomorrow morning
c.C.	with food [or] cubic centimetre
AAA	apply to affected area

Tips to remember Prescription Abbreviation or Sig Codes

Remembering these sig codes is a very confusing thing, so here we share a small tip which can solve your confusion.

When you see O remeber this is an eye which is also round.

When you see A remember this is Eyer because audio which we hear via our eyers is also conatins A.

When you see U remember this is as a face needing both eyes or ears.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is OD and BD in prescription?

OD and BD are the short form Latin words Omni die and bis in die. The meaning of OD in English is Once Daily and BD mean twice daily.

What does Rx stand for?

Rx is a Latin term which means thou take or you take in English. In ancient times it is believed to be the sign of God Jupiter who is known as God of Healing. By writing Rx in the prescription the prescription writer prays to God for the fast recovery of the patient. The part in the prescription where Rx is written is known as Superscription of a prescription.

what does hs mean in medical terms?

The full form of HS is “Hora Somni”. Hora Somni is a Latin word that means every bedtime in English. HS is written in the Prescription for the medication that we have to before going to bed.

Conclusion

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Master List of Prescription Abbreviations (Sig Codes)