Woman reading a prescription container

Patient Support & Advocacy

This is how generic drugs get their names

There’s a formula behind those funny names. Foremost, it’s meant to eliminate confusion and improve patient safety.

United States Adopted Names

Synthetic or Bio-engineered Receptor Protein Nomenclature

During the 67th INN Consultation, a discussion occurred on the future challenge of naming non-antibody scaffold (engineered) proteins in clinical use. It was suggested that during the 68th INN Consultation a new suffix for these types of proteins be evaluated.

United States Adopted Names

USAN Council

Learn about the council that is responsible for developing simple, informative generic drug names, who they are, how they operate and the issues they face.

United States Adopted Names

Apply for a United States Adopted Name

Download the application form to apply for a United States Adopted Name (USAN).

United States Adopted Names

Pronunciation guide

See a guide to facilitate the pronunciation of drug names adopted by USAN.

United States Adopted Names

Approved Hydrophobic names

Read the list of approved names for contact lens materials with water content less than 10%.

United States Adopted Names

USAN application forms

Find forms for base and modified forms of a compound, for single entity, modified salt form, revision to an adopted USAN, contact lens materials and biologics.

United States Adopted Names

United States Adopted Names approved stems

Review a list of USAN Council-approved stems and which chemical and/or pharmacologic parameters have been established.

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