Some commonly used medical terminology explained.📝📝📝

There are many professional terms in clinical medicine. Some professional terms look similar, but they mean different things. Misunderstanding these terms when taking medication may reduce the efficacy and even cause unnecessary side effects. This article will explain some common medical terms.

Dosages and maximal dose.

Dosage is the amount of a drug that is effective in treating a disease. The dosage is related to the different indications, the severity of the disease, and the patient itself. The dosage of the drug needs to be adjusted according to the above points.

Maximal dose is the maximum therapeutic dose of the drug. If the dose is over than maximal dose, it can become poison and produce toxic side effects. In addition, maximal dose does not necessarily refer to a single dose. It will also have a daily maximum dose and other conditions.

The clear meaning of before meal, during meal, after meal and on an empty stomach.

Before meal means taking the drug 0.5 to 1 hour before the meal. It can be to reduce food-drug interactions, to make the drug more effective, or to reduce the incidence of adverse reactions.

During meal means taking the drug immediately before the meal or during the meal. It is mainly for the drug to work better.

After meal means taking the drug 0 to 0.5 hour after the meal. It can be to reduce the irritation of the drug to the gastrointestinal tract or to increase the absorption of the drug.

On an empty stomach means fasting for 10 hours before taking the medicine. It is mainly to avoid the effect of food on the drug.

The difference between taking it every 8 hours and taking it three times a day.

Dosing every few hours is because some medicines need to be taken at precise intervals in order to be effective. Therefore, patients need to take the drug every 8 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours or other.

Medications that are taken several times a day are less precise about the time interval between dosing. Medication is usually taken according to the patient's meal time.

Contraindication.

Contraindications mean that the drug cannot be used with these symptoms. Otherwise, some serious adverse reactions may occur or are very likely, and even certain adverse reactions will occur. Take NSAIDs as an example:

• Ibuprofen: Its contraindication is in patients with active peptic ulcer. In these patients, the use of ibuprofen will definitely worsen the gastrointestinal ulcers and the adverse reactions of gastric bleeding are likely to occur.
• Etoricoxib: It is contraindicated in patients diagnosed with ischemic heart disease or cerebrovascular disease. Etoricoxib may induce serious adverse reactions (cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events) in patients.

Use with caution.

Use with caution means use under conditions. For example, aminoglycoside antibiotics are generally avoided in children younger than 6 years of age because of clear ototoxicity and nephrotoxicity. However, aminoglycoside antibiotics can be used in children in the following situations.

• Aminoglycoside antibiotics can be used when other less toxic antibiotics cannot be used and the child has a clear clinical indication for use.
• Adverse reactions should be closely monitored during treatment. When conditions permit, blood drug concentration monitoring should be implemented in patients and medication should be adjusted according to the results.

Definition of the incidence of adverse reactions.

Problems with the quality of the drug are not the cause of adverse reactions. Adverse effects are an inherent property of every drug. No matter how good the quality of the drug is, there will be adverse reactions. 

• Very rare: the incidence of adverse reactions < 0.01%.
• Rare: 0.01% ≤ the incidence of adverse reactions < 0.1%.
• Not common: 0.1% ≤ the incidence of adverse reactions < 1%.
• Common: 1% ≤ the incidence of adverse reactions < 10%.
• Very common: The incidence of adverse reactions ≥ 10%.

Statins: Common side effects are myalgia (about 1.5 to 5%) and liver damage (about 1 to 2%). Rhabdomyolysis is a rare side effect of it.

Thiazide diuretics: Raising blood uric acid levels is a very common side effect of these drugs. Therefore, it is contraindicated in patients with gout and should be avoided in patients with hyperuricemia.

Expiry date and period of use.

Expiry dates are generally marked as Exp. year/month or year/month/day. If the expiry date is only marked with the year and month, the medicine can be used until the last day of the month in that year. Such as Exp. 2022/02, the medicine can be used until 28th February 2022. If the expiry date is marked with the year, month and day, the medicine can be used until that date. Such as Exp. 2022/02/11,  the medicine can be used until 14th February 2022.

Period of use refers to the period during which the medicine can be used after the original packaging of the medicine is opened. The original packaging of ophthalmic preparations, nasal preparations, etc. is generally only used within 28 days after opening.