How to read drug packaging?

The outer packaging of children's medicines is brightly colored and has cute patterns. It is not simply to protect the medicines, but actually contains many mysteries! Let's follow the pharmacist and start looking for the "highlights"!

01Soul-searching question: "Who am I?"

Medicines, like babies, also have their own names, called generic names and trade names. The generic name of a medicine refers to the name commonly used internationally. It can be a medicine with the same chemical component or a medicine with the same prescription. The trade name is the name given by the manufacturer to its product. The same generic name has a different trade name for each manufacturer. On the drug packaging, the generic name is more than twice the size of the trade name. People may be more familiar with the trade name of a certain medicine, but the generic name is actually more important. The generic name in the "ingredients" of the drug can be used to determine whether the drugs are repeated when used in combination.

02Legal “ID Card”

The drug approval number is a symbol of the legality of drug production. The Drug Administration Law of the People's Republic of China [1] stipulates that the production of drugs "must be approved by the drug supervision and administration department of the State Council and issued a drug approval number." The format of the drug approval number is: National Medicine Standard + 1 letter + 8 digits. The letter "Z" represents traditional Chinese medicine, "H" represents chemical drugs, "J" represents imported packaged drugs, and "S" represents biological products. Only drugs with approval numbers can be purchased and used.

03 “Jurisdiction” and dosage

"Indications" or "Functions and Indications" indicate the scope of action of the drug and what diseases it can treat. "Usage and Dosage" is the specific method of using the drug. The dosage for children is calculated based on body weight. The greater the age difference, the greater the difference in dosage. If different dosages for different ages are specified in the "Usage and Dosage", it means it is the dosage for children; if the "Usage and Dosage" has only one method of use, such as three times a day, one bag at a time. This indicates the dosage for adults, and it needs to be converted proportionally when used by children of different ages.

04Special Signs

National laws and regulations stipulate that the labels of narcotic drugs, psychotropic drugs, toxic drugs for medical use, radioactive drugs, drugs for external use and over-the-counter drugs must be printed with specified symbols [2]. For example, Class A over-the-counter drugs have a red "OTC" symbol, safer Class B over-the-counter drugs have a green "OTC" symbol [3], and drugs for external use have a red "OTC" symbol.

05Expiration Date

The expiration date of the medicine on the medicine box is usually on the side or back of the medicine box. Pay attention to the expiration date of the medicine to avoid taking expired medicines that may harm your baby. The expiration date is marked in the format of "Valid until XXXX year XX month", "Valid until XXXX year XX month XX day", or "Valid until XXXX.XX.", "Valid until XXXX/XX/XX". The expiration date marked to the month is until the last day of that month. If the medicine is opened, the expiration date is no longer calculated according to the "Valid until" and the expiration date will be significantly shortened.

06Where should I put it?

For medicines that have special storage requirements, this is clearly indicated on the medicine box [2]. For example, the front of the box of Bifidobacterium tetravalent live bacteria tablets is marked with 2-8℃, indicating that it needs to be stored in a refrigerator.

07Warnings and reminders

Some medicine boxes are marked with precautions and contraindications, for example, the packaging of amantadine oral solution is marked as not suitable for infants under one year old.

Due to limited packaging space, if you want to know more drug information such as adverse reactions and precautions, you can check the drug instructions inside the drug packaging.

References

1. China Drug Administration Law, 2019.

2. State Food and Drug Administration. Regulations on Drug Instructions and Labels, 2006.

3. State Food and Drug Administration. “Regulations on the Classification and Administration of Prescription and Over-the-Counter Drugs”, 1999.

Statement: The outer packaging boxes shown in this popular science article have no interest relationship with the manufacturer.

(Author: Huang Feng; Reviewer: Zhu Huiting) Jiangxi Provincial Children's Hospital