Medical Material
ointment
oint·ment [ oint-muhnt ]
Subclass of:
Dosage Forms
Etymology:
Latin unguere = to spread or smear
The Latin term was altered in its stay in France to oignement, then in England it became ointment.
The Latin term was altered in its stay in France to oignement, then in England it became ointment.
Definitions related to ointments:
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A suspension or emulsion, semisolid (1) dosage form, usually containing less than 20 percent water and volatiles (2) and greater than 50 percent hydrocarbons, waxes, or polyols as the vehicle. This dosage form is generally for external application to the skin or mucous membranes. Note 1: A semisolid is not pourable; it does not flow or conform to its container at room temperature. It does not flow at low shear stress and generally exhibits plastic flow behavior. Note 2: Percent water and volatiles are measured by a loss on drying test in which the sample is heated at 105 degrees C until constant weight is achieved.CDISC TerminologyClinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC), 2021
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A semisolid preparation intended for external application to the skin or mucous membranes.NCI Health Level 7 VocabularyU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2018
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A substance used on the skin to soothe or heal wounds, burns, rashes, scrapes, or other skin problems.NCI Dictionary of Cancer TermsU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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Semisolid preparations used topically for protective emollient effects or as a vehicle for local administration of medications. Ointment bases are various mixtures of fats, waxes, animal and plant oils and solid and liquid hydrocarbons.NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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(ointment dosage form) A semi-solid, viscous in texture, that may be composed of a variety of bases including hydrocarbons, emulsifiers or vegetable oils, and mixed with active and/or inert ingredient(s).NCI ThesaurusU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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