Pill Identifier

Online Pill Identifier

Our favorite online pill identifier will let you quickly find out the type and name
of many prescription and other drugs. Take the risky guesswork out discovering
the type of pills you have with these great online pill identifier tools.

It is common to find old prescription medication you may have not taken in awhile. Many times they are taken out of their original container and put in a pillbox which makes pill identification difficult. A pill identifier can take the guesswork out of pill identification for most pills.

You will need to gather some information about the pill, capsule, or tablet to properly identify it. Most prescription medication has a code imprinted on it (usually numbers, letters, or a combination of both) write down this code. And accurately determine the color of the pill, capsule, or tablet.

Using a Pill Identifier

The code you have taken from the prescription medication will need to be entered into the pill identifier. Next, find the correct color of the medication from the menu. Finally, as best you can, choose the shape of the pill, capsule, or tablet from the menu options. It is also possible to identify the shape by looking at the database of pictures.

Once identified, you should either discard the prescription medication or make sure you properly label it for future use. Keep in mind most doctors and pharmacists suggest not to use prescription medication that does not have an expiration date clearly marked on it.

Unfortunately many parents find pills in their children’s room or clothing. Using a pill identifier will usually confirm or put to rest any concerns the parents have. If the pill does not show up in the database, one can always consult with a pharmacist, or if necessary, law enforcement officials to determine if the pill or capsule is an illegal drug.

The Future of Pill Identification

The pill identifier has been an important tool for the consumer and professionals alike for some time. However, with the huge growth of generic drugs in a many shapes and colors, and from many different manufactures, pill identification is getting increasingly difficult, even with a good pill identifier.

Standardization of pills containing the same medication would be ideal. However, it most likely not a practical solution in such a competitive industry. Even if the industry came together you would still have to overcome obstacles for those who are color blind or visually impaired. Color coding or small imprinted letters or numbers are of little use for those people even if they have access to a pill identifier.

There is probably one company looking into applying a very small bar code to the pill that contains medical and pill identification information. When the bar code is scanned the information about the prescription medication will be displayed or vocalized.

Combine this with a computer link, pill identification database, internal time clock, and you have very powerful tool to help patients taking prescription medication. The built in timing mechanism could not only record when the patient’s last took their prescription, but it could also be use to alert them when their next dose is to be taken.

Clearly this type of device would be used by the doctor to help the patient, and the pharmacist who is helping to deliver and answer questions about the medication. The pill identifier is an important tool, but clearly the above technology will have an important place with pill identification.

Some of the Most Commonly Abused Prescription Pills and Drugs Are:

Vicodin, OxyContin, Roxicet, Xanax, Valium, Klonopin, Phenobarbital, Codeine, Hydrocodone, Morphine, Oxycodone, Adderall, Dexedrine Ritalin and others. The Pillbox tool will enable you to quickly identify pills and medication by way of their indemnifying marks and pictures. Once a specific pill is recognized, you will be provided a link to the prescription information and label.

Pill Appearance Description

An important part of the Pillbox enterprise has been directing the formation of a library that contains uniform images of pills, tablets and capsules. The National Library of Medicine with the assistance of the FDA attained an enormous number of pill identifiers, including; shapes, sizes, colors to help determine the definitive pill image.

Pillbox pictures that are shown are the result of information and research from the pharmaceutical industry as well as material provided by the Food and Drug Administration. The National Library of Medicine has suggested certain requirements for how pill images should be collected and arranged. The Pillbox system was established to help with the identification of unknown medication. This program enables users to examine and recognize unknown pills and tablets by shape, imprint, color etc.

This program was initially designed for use by medical care providers, emergency doctors, and concerned people. This program lets users recognize pills and tablets based on physical conditions: Imprinted numbers or letters embedded on the medication, including color, size, and shape. Once identified, thumbnail images of potential matches are displayed to the user. The pictures are updated as the user his or her information. When a pill or tablet is identified, further information is given, including the generic name, ingredients, brand, and the identification number.

The Portal offers users a complete doorway to information on more than 20,000 drugs (over 200,000 unique searchable drug names and their synonyms). It covers medications from the time they begin clinical trials through their entry into the U.S. marketplace.

Suggestions for faster pill identification

It is important to understand that all FDA approved medication is required to have a unique marking or imprint. These markings would include numbers, letters, logos and symbols or a combination of these markings. Letters typically are just a manufactures logo, and it can be used for a number of
company purposes. The score on any tablet or pill is almost always used for making it to split or break it in half.

Try not to be too general when trying to identify the pill you have. Usually it is best just to use only the numbers imprinted on the tablet or pill. Get as many readable numbers as you can from the pill. Also, when searching keep all numbers and letters together without any spaces between numbers
and or letters.

Example: If you have the numbers 55 | 77, one set on each side of the tablet or pill, make sure you search with the numbers like this: 5577. If there is a letter like “B” associated with any numbers, then your search should look like this: B5577. If you cannot find the correct description of the pill or tablet, you are looking for, go to your local pharmacist and he or she will help you properly identify it.

If you have any serious concerns about pill identification that you cannot find an answer too, you should consult with you local pharmacist, doctor, or law enforcement agency as soon as possible.

You will find our favorite pill identifier programs online at:

http://pillbox.nlm.nih.gov/

In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff can help you with pill identification if you do not have any success with a pill identifier.
Visit their website at: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/ndc/default.cfm

The information on the website should not be taken or considered as any kind of medical advice. For medical advice of any kind, including advice for prescription medication or pill identification, please consult with a licensed physician.

Stop back soon as we will be expanding this website to include more pill identification tools and pictures.