Finding Drug Information

Drug Information Resources: Resources by Question Type (Topic)

But what resource should I begin with? It depends upon the type of question.

This table identifies specific resources, as starting points, to answer common question types (listed alphabetically). Links to the resources are also given so you can practice with them.

Resources by Question Type

Question Type	First Choices	Next Choices
Adverse effects	AHFS Drug Information , Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX ,  UpToDate	DailyMed , Manufacturers’ web sites, PubMed
Bioequivalency	FDA Electronic Orange Book	AHFS Drug Information
Chemical Data	AHFS Drug Information , NLM Drug Information Portal	MICROMEDEX
Clinical Trials	ClinicalTrials.gov
Comparative Information	AHFS Drug Information , Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) ,  MICROMEDEX	EMBASE , PubMed
Contraindications	AHFS Drug Information ,  Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only), MICROMEDEX , Gold Standard (Clincal Key)	Manufacturers’ web sites, NLM Drug Information Portal, PubMed
Cost	UpToDate	Commercial web sites such as GoodRX.com †
Disease state information	Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic Approach, 9th ed , Dynamed , MEDLINEPlus, Stat!Ref , UpToDate	MICROMEDEX , Natural Medicines , Clinical Key
Dosage Recommendations	AHFS Drug Information , Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX , Gold Standard (Clincal Key)	DailyMed, Manufacturers’ web sites
Drug administration	AHFS Drug Information ,  Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX , Gold Standard (Clincal Key)	Manufacturers’ web sites, NLM Drug Information Portal
Drug interactions (drug-drug, drug-food, drug-lab tests, drug-disease, etc.)	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only), MICROMEDEX, Natural Medicines , UpToDate (Lexi-Interact) Drug Interactions Program	Gold Standard (Clinical Key) , PubMed
Drugs in pregnancy and lactation	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX (ReproRisk), Drugs in Pregnancy and Lactation (Briggs), LactMed	AHFS Drug Information , Gold Standard (Clincal Key) , Natural Medicines
Herbal, natural & homepathic products, dietary supplements	Natural Medicines	CINAHL Plus , EMBASE , MICROMEDEX , product web sites
Identification (foreign)	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX (Martindale’s), European Medicines Agency (EMEA)	EMBASE , Web
Identification (domestic)	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only), MICROMEDEX, NLM Pillbox	product websites (see How Supplied section of package insert)
Immunization schedules	CDC web site	UpToDate , Immunization Action Coalition
Industry	BCC Research , Nexis Uni  (contains Pink Sheet, MedTech Insight, In Vivo, Scrip Intelligence), MarketResearch.com Academic	Factiva , Centerwatch
IV compatibility	MICROMEDEX (Trissel's)	Lippincott's Nursing Drug Guide
Manufacturer’s information, i.e. addresses, phone numbers, etc.	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , Manufacturer's web site
Non-proprietary and Proprietary Names	AHFS Drug Information , Drugs@FDA, Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only),  MICROMEDEX UpToDate	DailyMed, product web sites, PubMed
Nursing considerations	Lippincott's Nursing Drug Guide	Davis' Drug Guide
Over-the-counter products	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX	Web sites
Patient counseling/education	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only), MEDLINEPlus, MICROMEDEX, Natural Medicines	FDA for Consumers
Pharmacokinetics	AHFS Drug Information , Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) ,  MICROMEDEX	DailyMed,  product web sites, EMBASE , PubMed
Pharmacology	AHFS Drug Information, Basic & Clinical Pharmacology Textbook, Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX , Goodman & Gilman's	EMBASE , product web sites, NLM Drug Information Portal
Regulatory/legal information	FDA web site, Pharmacy Practice & the Law ,  Nexis Uni	USA.gov
Therapeutic use (approved indications)	AHFS Drug Information ,  Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX	DailyMed, FDA web site
Therapeutic use (off-label uses)	AHFS Drug Information , MICROMEDEX	PubMed
Toxicology/poisoning	Facts & Comparisons (Licensed for academic use only) , MICROMEDEX	ToxNet
Current news	Nexis Uni	News sites

†Commercial website, use for informational purposes only.