Dosage Forms, Drug Nomenclature, and Classification
What the exam tests
Questions test whether you can identify a medicine from its generic name, brand name, strength, and dosage form, and whether you know how formulation affects use. Mongolia uses international nonproprietary names (INN), ATC classification, national essential-medicines lists, and Cyrillic transliterations, so name confusion is a real safety issue.
Core concepts
- Nomenclature: the INN is the stable scientific name; brand names vary by manufacturer. A salt form, ester, or hydrate is not automatically interchangeable with another salt at the same milligram strength.
- Dosage forms: tablets may be immediate-release, modified-release, chewable, sublingual, or dispersible. Capsules, oral liquids, injections, suppositories, creams, inhalers, and traditional decoctions each have different administration and storage requirements.
- Classification: prescription versus OTC, controlled status, essential-medicines status, and therapeutic class. Classification drives labelling, storage, and records.
- Release mechanism: crushing a modified-release tablet can cause dose dumping. Enteric coating protects the stomach or the drug.
Worked example
A prescription reads “Metformin 500 mg, 1 tablet twice daily.” The stock has metformin immediate-release 500 mg and metformin extended-release 1000 mg. Correct action: select immediate-release 500 mg, because the prescribed strength and unspecified form match the immediate-release product. Do not substitute one extended-release 1000 mg tablet for two 500 mg doses; the release profile and dose timing differ. Confirm with the pharmacist if the prescription is ambiguous.
Traps that cost marks
Equating salt strength with base strength; assuming all tablets may be crushed; confusing sound-alike brand names; and ignoring that a “500 mg” modified-release product may not be interchangeable with an immediate-release product.