Drug Information Q&A Q15. Is there any difference between drugs prescribed at hospitals and clinics and those available at pharmacies and drugstores?

Answer

A. No. Drugs received at a hospital or doctor's office are drugs for which a prescription has been issued by a doctor based on the doctor's diagnosis and dispensed by a pharmacist. These are called prescription drugs. In contrast, drugs that can be purchased at pharmacies and drugstores are called over-the-counter (OTC) drugs.

Explanation

What is the difference between ethical drugs and OTC drugs?

The primary purpose of ethical drugs is to be effective against disease, i.e., to work well. For this reason, many types of active ingredients are used to make them more potent. For example, some medicines, such as anti-cancer drugs, are given priority in terms of efficacy even though they are known to have side effects. In addition, since there are so many drugs available to treat various diseases and symptoms, doctors can choose the drug that best suits each patient's symptoms.

Taking a cold as an example, if a patient has a fever, a fever reducer is prescribed; if a patient has a cough, a cough suppressant is prescribed; and so on. For the patient, this means that he or she can receive the exact medicine prescribed for his or her symptoms.

In the case of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, on the other hand, the primary emphasis is on safety. Safety is a top priority for OTC drugs, since there is no telling who will use them, from the elderly to children, from large people to small people, etc. Therefore, the active ingredients in the drugs are considered to be safe. For this reason, most drugs contain smaller amounts of active ingredients than ethical drugs, and are designed for use in the early stages of a disease or mild illness.

In addition, since patients themselves and their family members often determine the symptoms of illness, many OTC drugs are designed to treat as many symptoms as possible in advance.

A typical example of this is the general cold remedy, which covers the symptoms of a cold, including fever, cough, throat, sneezing, runny nose, headache, and aching joints.

In recent years, in response to the concept of self-care and self-medication, or taking responsibility for one's own health and treating minor physical ailments by oneself, prescription drugs that have been proven safe enough and have a proven track record of use have been converted to over-the-counter (OTC) drugs and are now sold. This is generally referred to as "switch OTC.

OTC drugs are classified into three groups according to the degree of risk: Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3. Class 1 OTC drugs with particularly high risk (H2 blocker-containing (ganyu) drugs, some hair medicines, etc.) require pharmacists to provide information to people who want to buy the drug.

Class 2 (major cold remedies, antipyretic analgesics, gastrointestinal analgesics, etc.) and Class 3 OTC drugs (vitamin B and C-containing health drugs, major bowel control drugs, digestive drugs, etc.) can be sold not only by pharmacists but also by registered sales persons who have passed a prescribed examination and are sold at supermarkets and convenience stores with licensed stores. They are also sold at supermarkets and convenience stores that have licensed stores.

Chart/Column

15｜Differences between ethical drugs and OTC drugs

MINI Column Drugs requiring special instructions

The Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Law (official name: "Law Concerning Quality, Efficacy and Safety Assurance of Drugs and Medical Devices"), which is scheduled to come into effect in June 2014, will create a new classification called "drug requiring special instructions. It is expected that items immediately after the switch from prescription drugs and deleterious drugs, which are different in nature from other OTC drugs, will be designated as drugs requiring special instructions, and online sales will be prohibited.

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