Meeication Pre/Suffixes

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OK, probably a dumb question - but am I right in thinking that the with the majority of meds (in nursing pharmacology) comes from learning the suffixes and not the prefixes??

I've been searching all over the place, and the majority of lists I'm finding are all suffixes, with maybe one or two prefixes...am I missing something or are the suffixes where the primary "clue" to the med is??

If not - could somebody please point me in the right direction to a list or something?

I know there's a ton more to learn - such as indications/contra-indications/potential OD symptoms etc, but I'm just at the beginning stages and looking for the naming conventions!

Thanks so much!

**Disclaimer....I'm a nursing student, not an RN**

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Yes, medications from the same drug "family" that work about the same way and treat the same conditions tend to have the same suffixes on the generic names, and it is helpful to familiarize yourself with them. I remember as a nursing student, my clinical instructor had given me a little cheat sheet for hypertension meds - the "prils" (ace inhibitors), the "olols" (beta blockers) and the "pines" (calcium channel blockers) and I kept and peeked at it for a good year. The ATI NCLEX pharm review had a similar list of suffixes included in the materials.

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Thank you BBP42!!

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Specializes in ICU + Infection Prevention.

Check out this book

Memorizing Pharmacology: A Relaxed Approach: Tony Guerra: 9781329898448: Amazon.com: Books

It breaks down med names for easier memorization and grouping

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