Prescription line grammar
When translating formulations into Latin, choosing the correct grammatical case is critically important. If a physician prescribes individual active substances (e.g., belladonna extract, sodium salicylate, menthol, lincomycin hydrochloride), their names are always placed in the genitive case. This rule is due to the fact that grammatically, the names of the substances depend on the specified quantity — "take (how much?) grams (of what?) of platyphylline hydrotartrate".
Ready-made pharmaceutical forms follow a different grammatical rule. If pre-formed preparations with a commercial name are prescribed, the form itself is put in the accusative plural case. Meanwhile, the trade name remains in the nominative case and must be enclosed in quotation marks. A classic example of such formatting is a prescription for tablets: Recipe: Tabulettas "Theodibaverinum" numero 12. Suppositories are also frequently prescribed in the accusative case when using a construction with the preposition "with" (for example, Suppositoria cum Diprophyllino).
Subscription and standard verbs
Any prescription begins with an address to the pharmacist — the verb Recipe (Take). After listing all components, instructions regarding the necessary technological procedures follow.
- Mixing: The command Misce (Mix) is used. If the result should be a specific undivided form, the phrase fiat (sing.) or fiant (pl.) — "let there be made" — is added. For a soft paste, write fiat pasta, for a suppository, fiat suppositorium, for a liniment, fiat linimentum, and for a herbal mixture in the plural, fiant species.
- Dispensing and dosing: The standard short command to dispense a preparation is Da (Dispense). If it is necessary to dispense a specific number of divided doses (in ampoules, capsules, or tablets), an expanded formulation is used: Da tales doses numero... (Dispense such doses in the number of...). For example, for paracetamol or calcium powders, they write: Da tales doses numero 10 in tabulettis.
- Designation: The prescription form concludes with the verb Signa (Sign), after which the method of administration of the medication is indicated.
Designation of quantity and proportions
The quantity of substances in a prescription can be indicated in grams, milliliters, or drops (for example, alcoholic iodine solution — 6 drops). If several consecutive ingredients are prescribed in the exact same dosage, to avoid repeating the same numbers, the special word ana — equal parts — is placed before the last numerical value. For example, if zinc oxide and wheat starch are taken at 12.5 grams each, the prescription will read: Zinci oxydi, Amyli Tritici ana 12,5.
When it is necessary to bring the total volume or mass of a complex drug up to a certain value using a solvent or excipient (distilled water, 70% ethyl alcohol, petrolatum), the preposition ad (up to the specified weight or volume) is used. Translation example: Aquae destillatae ad 200 ml or Vaselini ad 50,0.
Features of translating various pharmaceutical forms
Different types of preparations require their own nuances during translation and formatting of the prescription:
- Liquid forms: Solutions (including those for injection), infusions, and liniments require a precise indication of concentration and volume. For example, a 4% gentamicin sulfate solution for injection is translated as Solutionis Gentamicini sulfatis 4% 0,002 pro injectionibus. Alcoholic solutions (hydrogen peroxide solution) are formatted with the addition of the adjective spirituosae. If two ready-made solutions are simply mixed (e.g., sodium norsulfazole and isotonic sodium chloride solution), the standard Misce. Da. Signa is written.
- Soft forms: When formulating complex ointments and pastes, the active components (ichthammol, xeroform, vinilin) are listed first, followed by the excipient bases (petrolatum, castor oil, glycerol). An indication of the required consistency (Misce, fiat pasta) is mandatory.
- Solid dosages: Powders can be simple or compound (containing belladonna extract, phenyl salicylate, basic bismuth nitrate, theobromine). They are dispensed in pure form, in tablets, or in capsules (in capsulis).
- Plant materials: The names of plant parts (leaves, herb, bark) are always placed first in the genitive case before the name of the plant itself. Examples: Herbae Hyperici (St. John's wort herb), Foliorum Urticae (nettle leaves), Corticis Frangulae (buckthorn bark), or Herbae Millefolii (yarrow herb). Herbal mixtures (species) are frequently prepared from them.
Briefly: answers to topical questions
How are drops denoted in Latin when prescribing liquid pharmaceutical forms?
gtt., gtts. (guttam, guttas) — a drop, drops.
To avoid confusing cases in a prescription: if we take a substance as an ingredient (take how much? of what?) — this is the genitive case. If we prescribe ready-made factory packaging (take what?) — this is the accusative case.
Class and exam questions
How to properly prescribe commercial drug names?
The trade name is always written in the nominative case and must be enclosed in quotation marks. The pharmaceutical form itself is placed in the accusative case, for example: "Theodibaverin" tablets — Tabulettas "Theodibaverinum".
How to translate the phrase "let there be made"?
Depending on the form, the verb fiat (singular) or fiant (plural) is used. For example, for preparing a paste, write Misce, fiat pasta, and for a herbal mixture — Misce, fiant species.
How to indicate that components are taken in equal shares?
For this, the word ana (in equal parts) is used, which is placed before the dosage of the last of the equal components. If it is necessary to supplement the volume of the base to the required amount, the preposition ad (up to the specified weight) is written.
What else to study on this topic
- Formulation of prescriptions for complex dosed powders
- Rules for translating liquid forms: liniments and alcoholic solutions
- Grammar features of rectal suppositories
- Prescribing solutions for injection in ampoules
- Translation of prescriptions for herbal mixtures and infusions
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Other topics in the section "Prescription abbreviations. Frequency stems"
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