Prescription Drugs

A prescription drug is a licensed medicine which requires a physician’s prescription before it can be obtained. Prescription drugs are regulated by legislation which can be obtained after prescription. “Rx” is often used widely as a short form for prescription drugs. You have seen “Rx” written on physician medicine slips. Rx is an abbreviation of the Latin word “recipe”, the imperative form of "recipere," meaning "take thus". In European countries, any kind of prescription drug has a monograph or Patient Information Leaflet (PIL) that provides comprehensive information about the medicine.