Any FDA-approved drug has a generic name and a brand name. The United States Adopted Names (USAN) Council gives the generic name of a drug. The generic name is to “chemical name”, as the brand name is to “trade Name”.
Generic name: The generic name consists of a stem and, sometimes, a substem that appears at the end of the name. Stems denote the chemical structure, indication, or action at a specific receptor. Drugs with the same stem are related. It also has a one or two-syllable prefix that differentiates each drug from others in its class.
For example, “sildenafil” and “tadalafil” have a stem “-afil” as they belong to the same class of medications called PDE5 (phosphodiesterase 5) inhibitors. The prefixes are “sil” and “tadal”. The “den” in sildenafil is known as an infix and may be used to classify certain medications further.
Brand name: A specific name given by a drug company or manufacturer protected by a patent.
For example, “Tylenol” is the brand name for “acetaminophen”.
Brand name | Generic name |
Protonix | Pantoprazole |
Benadryl | Diphenhydramine |
Tums | Calcium carbonate |
Nasonex | Mometasone |
Allegra | Fexofenadine |
Ventolin | Albuterol |
A generic medication may be sold under its generic or brand name. For example, Ibuprofen (generic) is sold under various brand names, such as Advil and Motrin.
Stem | Drug class or classification | Example |
---|---|---|
-stat | Anti-hyperlipidemics or HMG CoA reductase inhibitors | Atorvastatin |
-prazole | Proton pump inhibitors or PPI for acid reflux/GERD | Omeprazole |
-lukast | Leukotriene receptor blockers | Montelukast |
-grel | Platelet aggregation inhibitors | Clopidogrel |
-faxine | Antidepressants; serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI) | Venlafaxine |
-oxetine | Antidepressants; selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) | Duloxetine |
-sartan | Angiotensin II receptor blockers | Valsartan |
-floxacin | Antibiotics; quinolone derivatives | Levofloxacin |
-vir | Antivirals (avir, ovir, ivir) | Valacyclovir |
-mab | Monoclonal antibodies | Daclizumab |
alol | Combined alpha and beta blockers | Labetalol |
ilol | Combined alpha and beta blockers | Carvedilol |
olol | Beta blockers | Metoprolol |
-olone | Non-prednisone steroids | Minaxolone |
-cillin | Penicillins | Penicillin |
-ase | Enzymes | Dornase alfa |
-caine | Local anesthetics | Lidocaine, bupivacaine, prilocaine |
-conazole | Azole antifungals | Fluconazole |
Prefix “Peg” means that a biologic substance, such as peptide, is pegylated. Infix -io- is added to suggest a high iodine content (e.g. amiodarone). When -fos- appears anywhere in a drug name, the element phosphorus is present (e.g. ifosfamide).
*Pharmaceutical equivalence means drugs with identical active ingredients in identical amounts (strength), forms, and routes of administration.
Sign up for free to take 6 quiz questions on this topic