Why Do Medication Names Often Sound Gibberish?

You walk into a local pharmacy, desperately in search of a remedy for agitating headaches. You’ve been dealing with migraines for the past few hours, so you’re not willing to wait in line at a nearby walk-in clinic for a prescription. A good over-the-counter drug should solve those troubling headaches of yours. After a pharmacy clerk directs you to the location of migraine medications, you come across a common issue for customers: Which medication is right for you? There are plenty of options with different labels and names you’ve most likely never heard of in your life—zolmitripan, acetaminophen, frovatriptan, and the list goes on. What’s the deal with these drug names that often sound like complete nonsense?

Currently, all clinical drugs are manufactured and strictly regulated before they are labeled with official or scientific names. Researchers are continuously innovating and researching new drugs such as some designed as cures for varying types of cancer. Before researchers even attempt to create a new drug, they must establish professional research or an outline detailing the drug’s purpose and usage. The research should draw from crucial genetic studies—based on animal, human, and bacterial genomes—that help identify genes responsible for certain diseases. Researchers then have to identify biological targets—a specific protein or gene—to mark with the theoretical drug. These targets must have a role in the specific disease or malfunctions in cellular processes. 

The proposed drug must then undergo several enduring processes in order to ensure complete efficiency and safety for human consumption. The structure of the drug is dependent on its effect, so scientists must first validate the drug’s outcomes through molecular models based on biological mechanisms. Technologies such as computers and artificial intelligence play an important role in linking various lab chemicals to the biological target. Through silico-modeling—a common computer modeling method for representing pharmacologic reactions—scientists are able to synthesize the right chemical compounds for manufacturing the drug. After the drug is successfully developed, it must go through numerous clinical trials to assess the drug’s toxicity and its distribution throughout the human body. Clinical trials are strictly regulated by ethical principles. Healthy volunteers or informed, consenting patients receive the drug and are meticulously observed over the span of months. 

While most of the regulations and processes are independently conducted by pharmaceutical companies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decides whether the finished drug product can legally and officially be used in clinical practice and for marketing purposes. The FDA’s approval of the new drug is processed under a “New Drug Application” (NDA), ensuring the tested drug is completely safe and effective for use. Moreover, further implementations of the drug in the market, such as drug advertisement and product usage, are rigorously monitored by the FDA. The drug’s safety is thoroughly evaluated over the course of several years. 

If the new drug is given both clinical and FDA approval, it can officially be labeled before it is introduced into the clinical drug market. The medications we often see in pharmacies are labeled the same way as any other prescription drugs. Naming drugs is a serious and long process that follows an established set of guidelines and rules, mainly the drug nomenclature. The names for drugs are first classified into two primary sections: nonproprietary (generic) names or brand names.

 Drugs that have generic names involve the use of suffixes and prefixes that symbolize their scientific functionalities and effects. They are categorized into different classes of medications—antibiotics, antihistamines, anti-inflammatories, etc. For instance, drugs designed to be used as antidepressants have names that will always end in either the suffixes “-oxetine” or “-ipramine.” Fluoxetine, a popular antidepressant drug, follows this general rule. Another illustration would be omeprazole, which is a commonly known drug that is used to treat acidic conditions such as indigestion, heartburn, and varying types of acid reflux. Omeprazole and other drugs that end in the suffix “-prazole” make use of proton pump inhibitors that ultimately lead to a decrease in stomach acid when consumed. Since nurses and doctors are trained to memorize certain medications and treatments for specific diseases, it is highly important that drugs can easily be remembered and pronounced. Additionally, scientists refrain from using letters such as H, J, K, W, and Y when naming drugs. They take into account various foreign alphabets, such as Latin and Arabic, ensuring that generic drug names can translate into different languages. 

On the other hand, some drugs are officially labeled with brand names. These are names given by pharmaceutical companies for marketing purposes, allowing them to associate and trademark their products with their brand. Popular examples are Tylenol, Ozempic, and Adderall. The brand name usually reflects the drug’s functionalities and overall purpose, making use of witty and creative analogies. For instance, Lyrica is a drug created by Pfizer to treat nerve pain, and its name was intended to be associated with healing musical lyrics. Similar to any other drug-creating processes, the brand names must be approved by both the FDA and the European Medicines Agency.

Drug naming implies another subject of concern: is there any psychological effect on patients? In theory, generic and brand labeling could have a measurable effect on patients and overall treatment through a popularly observed phenomenon: the “placebo effect.” A popular and recognized brand name for a drug could instill an inaccurate mindset among consumers, leading to unexpected results that undermine the drug’s effectiveness and usage. Brand labeling might appeal more to the patient due to both the drug’s name and parent company. These drugs can appear to be more effective than generic-named drugs in terms of treatment and side effects. However, the case behind many recorded medical errors and confusion in treatment lies in the packaging of the drugs themselves. For example, scientists found that inaccuracies in drug labeling cause one third of treatment errors. Both labeling and packaging of the drug’s dosage, functionalities, and side effects are heavily important factors to take note of. Proper packaging is crucial in both the safety and verification of the pharmaceutical drug, which could be manipulated to be misleading for unethical marketing purposes. It is crucial to note the proper usage for the drugs you take, since certain risks might be associated with different dosages.

As scientists discover new methods of developing medications for all kinds of diseases and infections, the drug industry becomes more prevalent than ever in our everyday lives. While there will be future breakthroughs and groundbreaking innovations in pharmacology, the complexities behind drug regulation and distribution may escalate into an immense issue for consumer well-being. Pharmaceutical companies may often dismiss and overlook certain aspects of drugs that can put thousands of lives at risk. The lack of transparency in the drug industry to the public continues to persist in history.