How salt names are formed
Pharmaceutical Latin follows a strict order when naming salts. The construction consists of two nouns. The first position must indicate the name of the cation — a metal or a base — which takes the form of the genitive case (Genitivus). The second position contains the name of the anion, i.e., the acid residue, in the nominative case (Nominativus).
The general scheme is as follows: > Cation (Gen.) + Anion (Nom.)
For example, the sodium nitrate compound is written as Natrii nitras, where Natrii acts as the cation in the genitive case, and nitras represents the anion in the nominative case. Other drug names, including Kalii bromidum, are formed similarly.
Translation features and prescription formatting
When prescribing drugs, sodium and its derivatives occupy a special place. Let us consider practical examples from prescription practice:
- Oxacillin-sodium
- Medical prescription: Take: Oxacillin-sodium 0.25. Dispense such doses numbered 6. Sign.
- Latin text: Rp.: Oxacillini-natrii 0.25. D.t.d. N. 6. S.
- Other dosage forms
- Hydrocortisone ointment: Rp.: Unguenti Hydrocortisoni 1 % 10.0
- Complex prescriptions for liquid forms containing alcohol and water: Rp.: Resorcini 0.1, Spiritus aethylici 95 % 5 ml, Aquae destillatae 15 ml, M.D.S.
- Divided powders of purified sulfur: Rp.: Sulfuris depurati 0.5, D.t.d. N. 30, S.
Complex prescriptions and tablets
Formatting combined drugs and tablets requires knowledge of grammatical constructions and abbreviations.
As an example, here is the prescription for "Microiodine" tablets with phenobarbital, coated:
- Rp.: Tabulettas "Microiodum" cum Phenobarbitalo obductas numero 40
- D. in vitro nigro (the variant in lagena nigra is also permitted)
- S.
Here, the tablet name and auxiliary components agree in the corresponding cases, and the dispensing is indicated with a dark bottle.
Cation is first and genitive (Gen.), Anion is second and nominative (Nom.). Formula: "Whose?" (Cation of what? Sodium) + "What?" (Anion: nitrate).
Class and exam questions
In what case is the name of the cation (metal) written in salts?
The name of the cation is always placed first in the genitive case (Genitivus).
How to correctly translate "sodium nitrate" into Latin?
The name is written as Natrii nitras, where Natrii is in the genitive case and nitras is in the nominative.
How is the dosage of oxacillin-sodium formatted in a prescription?
The prescription is written as follows: Rp.: Oxacillini-natrii 0.25, followed by the indication of dose dispensing and the signature.
What else to study on this topic
- Rules for forming salt names using the suffixes -as, -is, -idum
- Formatting prescriptions for hydrocortisone ointments
- Complex prescriptions with resorcinol, alcohol, and distilled water
- Translation and dosage features of purified sulfur
- Rules for prescribing tablet forms and medications in dark bottles
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Other topics in the "Salt Names" section
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