Patient Education: OTC Medications

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OTC medicine is also known as nonprescription medicine or OTC medicine. All of these terms refer to medications that can be purchased without a prescription. They are safe and effective when used as directed on the label and by your health care professional.

OTC drugs are those that can be purchased without a prescription.
OTC medications allow people to relieve many vexing symptoms and cure some diseases affordably. However, using these drugs safely necessitates knowledge, common sense, and responsibility.

In addition to the commonly known OTC drugs such as aspirin and acetaminophen, the Food and Drug Administration considers many other commonly available products to be OTC drugs. OTC drugs include toothpaste, mouthwashes, eye drops, wart removers, first aid creams, ointments containing antibiotics, and even dandruff shampoos. Each country determines which drugs are available over the counter.

Some OTC medications were previously only available by prescription. Drugs with excellent safety records may be approved for over-the-counter sale by the FDA after many years under prescription regulation. Examples include the analgesic ibuprofen and the heartburn treatment famotidine. Often, the OTC version contains significantly fewer active ingredients per tablet, capsule, or caplet than the prescription drug. When determining appropriate OTC drug doses, manufacturers and the FDA strive to balance safety and effectiveness.

OTC medications are not always better tolerated than comparable prescription medications. For example, the over-the-counter sleep aid diphenhydramine can have just as serious side effects as many prescription sleep aids, particularly in the elderly.

Patient Education: OTC Medications

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Patient Education: OTC Medications