What should I engrave on my Medical ID?
If you’re in an accident or have a medical emergency, it’s imperative that your MedicAlert ID is engraved with your most critical medical information. First responders are trained to look for medical IDs. Therefore, your medical ID engraving should reflect the vital information that will help you get fast and accurate care in an emergency.
Deciding on what information to engrave can be challenging – especially if you if have more than one medical condition, allergy, or medication. The American College of Emergency Physicians advises that you engrave in the following order:
- Allergies – but only those likely to cause anaphylaxis or severe reaction
- Medications – any that will affect how you are treated in an emergency, such as blood thinners or immunosuppressants
- Medical Conditions – your primary condition(s) – heart disease, diabetes, epilepsy, dementia
- Implanted Medical Devices – including pacemaker, ICD, LVAD, GCM
- Other special instructions – i.e. no MRI, carries EPIPEN
Remember that only the most critical information goes on your ID. The rest of your medical history – including your current medications, past surgeries, vaccinations and more – are stored in your MedicAlert health profile and will be communicated to first responders by our 24/7 emergency support team.
If you are unsure what to engrave, talk to your physician. And our Member Care team is available Monday – Friday from 6am – 4:30 PM ET to help – call us on 800.432.5378.
What Is a medical abbreviation?
When engraving your MedicAlert ID, it’s extremely important that you maximize the space on the emblem to communicate your most vital medical information. It’s equally important to use the most common abbreviations used in the medical community. For instance, the condition ‘High Blood Pressure’ — also known as Hypertension — is very long and would take up a lot of space on an ID if you need to include other information. Using the medical abbreviation of “HBP” or “HTN” will communicate to emergency personnel, doctors, nurses and clinicians that you have high blood pressure.
Do first responders understand medical abbreviations?
Yes, first responders, doctors, nurses, other clinicians, and emergency response professionals are trained to look for medical IDs and to understand the abbreviations that are engraved on the IDs.
What are common medical abbreviations for medical alert bracelets?
At MedicAlert we are continually adding new medical abbreviations to our vast database. Our medical response team collaborates with partners in the medical community to understand, compile and diligently maintain a list of the most frequently used and recognized abbreviations. We want to ensure that our members appropriately use the space on their IDs – but more importantly, maximize the effectiveness of their engraving. We recommend engraving as few abbreviations as possible to avoid confusion or misunderstanding.
Here are some commonly used medical abbreviations:
COMMON ABBREVIATIONS |
|
| Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm | AAA |
| Allergy | ALGY |
| Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome | AIDS |
| Aortic Valve Replacement | AVR |
| Aspirin | ASA |
| As Needed | PRN |
| Attention Deficit Disorder | ADD |
| Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder | ADHD |
| Autologous Bone Marrow Transplant | ABMT |
| Atrial Fibrillation | A-Fib |
| Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure | BIPAP |
| Blood Pressure | BP |
| Bone Marrow Transplant | BMT |
| Cerebrovascular Accident | CVA |
| Cervical Spine | C-Spine |
| Chronic Kidney Disease | CKD |
| Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease | COPD |
| Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy | CTE |
| Ciprofloxacin | CIPRO |
| Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia | CAH |
| Congestive Heart Failure | CHF |
| Coronary Artery Disease | CAD |
| Coronary Artery Bypass Graft | CABG |
| Continuous Glucose Monitoring Sensor | CGMS |
| Deep Vein Thrombosis | DVT |
| Diabetes Mellitus | DM |
| Diabetic Ketoacidosis | DKA |
| Do Not Resuscitate | DNR |
| Epinephrine | EPI |
| Epinephrine Pen (auto-injector) | EPIPEN |
| Erythromycin Ethylsuccinate | EES |
| Fibromyalgia Syndrome | FMS |
| Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease | GERD |
| Gastrostomy Tube | G-Tube |
| Generalized Anxiety Disorder | GAD |
| High Blood Pressure | HBP |
| History of | HX |
| Hydrochlorothiazide | HCTZ |
| Hydrochloride | HCL |
| Hypertension | HTN |
| Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura | ITP |
| Idiopathic Hypertrophic Subaortic Stenosis | IHSS |
| Implanted Cardioverter Defibrillator | ICD |
| In Case of Emergency | ICE |
| Inflammatory Bowel Disease | IBD |
| Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus | IDDM |
| Intravenous | IV |
| Intravenous Immune Globulin | IVIG |
| Irritable Bowel Syndrome | IBS |
| Jejunostomy Tube | J-Tube |
| Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome | KTS |
| Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber Syndrome | KTW |
| Left | LT |
| Left Bundle Branch Block | LBBB |
| Malignant Hyperthermia Susceptible | MH Susceptible |
| Medication(s)/Prescription(s) | MED/MEDS/RX/RXS |
| Mitral Valve Prolapse | MVP |
| Multiple Chemical Sensitivities | MCS |
| Multiple Sclerosis | MS |
| Myocardial Infarction | MI |
| Muscular Dystrophy | MD |
| Nasogastric Feeding Tube | NG |
| Nitroglycerin | NTG |
| No Known Allergies | NKA |
| No Known Drug Allergies | NKDA |
| Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs | NSAIDs |
| Nothing by Mouth | NPO |
| Oxygen | O2 |
| Parkinson’s Disease | PD |
| Penicillin | PCN |
| Peripheral Vascular Disease | PVD |
| Post Traumatic Stress Disorder | PTSD |
| Pulmonary Embolism | PE |
| Rheumatoid Arthritis | RA |
| Right | RT |
| Right Bundle Branch Block | RBBB |
| Subacute Bacterial Endocarditis | SBE |
| Supraventricular Tachycardia | SVT |
| Systemic Lupus Erythematosus | SLE |
| Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome | TMJ |
| Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis Vaccine | TDaP |
| Tetracycline | TCN |
| Tracheostomy/Tracheotomy | TRACH |
| Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement | TAVR |
| Transplant or Treatment | TX |
| Transurethral Resection of Prostate | TURP |
| Traumatic Brain Injury | TBI |
| Tuberculosis | TB |
| Venipuncture | VP |
| Ventricular Fibrillation | V-FIB |
| Ventricular Tachycardia | V-TACH |
| Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt | VP Shunt |
| Von Willebrand’s Disease | VWD |
MEDICATIONS YOU SHOULD PUT ON AN ID |
| Blood Thinners / Anticoagulants |
| Warfarin |
| Coumadin |
| Apixaban (Eliquis) |
| Dabigatran (Pradaxa) |
| Edoxaban (Savaysa) |
| Rivaroxaban (Xarelto) |
| Immunosuppressants |
| Calcineurin Inhibitors: Tacrolimus and Cyclosporine |
| Antiproliferative agents: Mycophenolate Mofetil, Mycophenolate Sodium and Azathioprine |
| mTOR inhibitor: Sirolimus, Torisel |
| Corticosteroids |
| Bethamethasone (Celestone) |
| Prednisone (Prednisone Intensol) |
| Prednisolone (Orapred, Prelone) |
| Triamcinolone (Aristospan Intra-Articular, Aristospan Intralesional, Kenalog) |
| Methylprednisolone((Medrol, Depo-Medrol, Solu-Medrol) |
| Dexamethasone |
