Do you take your medicine as a pill? Is it injected? Sprayed under your tongue? When you receive your prescription from your doctor and take it to your pharmacist, you will see that your prescription comes with directions on how it should be taken. It is critical that all prescribed medication not only be taken when prescribed, but exactly as directed as well.
The team here at Canada Online Health has put together this quick reference list for you to help you understand some of the keywords used to describe how medication is to be administered.
buccal - held inside the cheek
enteral - delivered directly into the stomach or intestine (with a G-tube or J-tube)
inhalable - breathed in through a tube or mask
infused - injected into a vein with an IV line and slowly dripped in over time
intramuscular - injected into muscle with a syringe
intravenous - injected into a vein or into an IV line
nasal - given into the nose by spray or pump
ophthalmic - given into the eye by drops, gel, or ointment
oral - taken by mouth as a pill, tablet, capsule, lozenge, or liquid
otic - given by drops into the ear
rectal - inserted into the rectum
subcutaneous - injected into the fat tissue just under the skin
sublingual - held under the tongue
topical- applied to the skin
transdermal -given through an adhesive patch placed on the skin
Arming yourself with information about your medication, what it does, when to take it and how to take it is an important part of self-care. As always, don’t be afraid to speak to your doctor about your concerns or to ask questions about your treatment. Working together with your doctor will give help reduce your stress and give you peace of mind so you can focus on being well.
