If you find medical pills in their right packages, it’s easy to tell what medicine it is because the name iS Right there on the package. A simple search of the medicine name will reveal what the pill is all about and what it’s meant for.
It’s when you find a pill laying on the table or in your cabinet without any packaging that you need a pill identifier. These are tools (web tools and mobile apps) that combine the characteristics of the pill to try and identify it.
How To Identify Pills:
Basically these tools require you provide information like the shape, color, type and imprint on the pill. This information is then looked up in the database at the back end of the tool. The pill that most closely matches your description. Sometimes, with an image you can use to compare with what you have.
Drugs.com seems to be the biggest drug data base on the internet with loads of information about most types of medicine. They also have a pill identification tool. After you read and accept the terms, you’ll see the tool.
The three most important parameters are asked for. The imprint on the pill, the shape of the pill and the color. Given the extensive database and literature in this website, you’ll probably get what you’re looking for. Drugs.com also have mobile apps for Android and iOS users that will cost you $0.99. These are convenient in case you want to identify pills in the go.
WebMD is also another health website that has a pill identification tool. They also require you to fill in the parameters of the pill and request for matching pills. WebMD don’t have any mobile apps that I know of.
PEPID is another pill identifier tool. They have a web interface and a mobile browser interface for pill identification. Although there’s no app, the mobile page works well with your smartphone browser.
My Two Cents:
NB: These tools don’t give expiration dates for pills. So even after identifying a pill, you’re not supposed to take any pill whose expiry date you’re not sure about.
Because it’s a sensitive issue, use two or three different tools to see if you come up with the same result.
These pill identifiers only identify prescription pills.