Basic concepts
The dose
The dose refers to the amount of medicine to be taken at one time. For example, this could be two capsules or two and a half tablets. The dose of a liquid medication is usually expressed in millilitres (ml).
Example 1.
The indication 10 ml x 3 means that the medicine is prescribed to be taken in one dose of 10 ml and is taken three times during the day. The total amount of medicine to be taken throughout the day is therefore 30 ml.
Picture Pixabay.
Picture Pixabay.
Active substance
Active substance means a medicinal substance contained in a product which is intended to cure, alleviate or prevent a disease or a symptom of a disease. The package information leaflet informs you what active substance the medicine contains and how much. The amount of active substance per tablet or capsule, or the concentration of the solution of the active substance, is always indicated on the package or on the side of the medicine bottle.
Example 2
Primaspan is used, for example, to prevent vascular thrombosis. Jorma has been prescribed 150 mg of Primaspan. There are 100 mg Primaspan tablets in the pharmacy. How many tablets should you give Jorma? What is the active ingredient in Primaspan tablets?
Picture Primaspan 100 mg 100 entero tablets - Apteekkituotteet.fi online pharmacy
As the tablet strength is 100 mg, i.e. one tablet contains 100 mg of the active substance, Jorma should be given one and a half tablets of Primaspan. The active substance mentioned on the packaging is acetylsalicylic acid. So Jorma is given 150 mg of acetylsalicylic acid, the trade name here being Primaspan, for the prevention of vascular thrombosis.
Picture Primaspan 100 mg 100 entero tablets - Apteekkituotteet.fi online pharmacy
As the tablet strength is 100 mg, i.e. one tablet contains 100 mg of the active substance, Jorma should be given one and a half tablets of Primaspan. The active substance mentioned on the packaging is acetylsalicylic acid. So Jorma is given 150 mg of acetylsalicylic acid, the trade name here being Primaspan, for the prevention of vascular thrombosis.
The strength and concentration of the medicine
The concentration of a medicine tells you how much of the active ingredient is in the medicine. The word 'concentration' is therefore usually associated with a liquid medicine. In the case of a solid medicine, such as tablets, the word is usually used to refer to the strength of the medicine.
Usually the concentration is expressed in mg/ml, i.e. milligrams of active substance per milliliter of solution. The concentration of the drug solution can always be found on the side of the bottle.
Generally, strength is expressed in ug/mg/g, i.e. micrograms, milligrams or grams of drug substance per tablet/capsule. The strength of the medicine is stated on the medicine package, for example Primaspan 100 mg.
Units
In pharmaceutical invoices, SI units are used, usually grams (g), milligrams (mg) and micrograms (ug) for mass and millilitres (ml) for volume. The International Unit (IU) is also used. This unit describes the potency of biological and pharmacological substances.
Picture Wikipedia.
Picture Wikipedia.