# Why do more recent name brand drug names usually contain Xs or Zs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 9, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488 "2009-07-09T19:53:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/21 "2009-07-10T03:08:47Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Look at the bolded spellings in the last thing I quoted. My mistake. But the spelling in my link is Bonviva. Approved by the FDA. Are you still questioning that? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/22 "2009-07-10T03:22:27Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > My mistake. But the spelling in my link is Bonviva. Approved by the FDA. Are you still questioning that? That it was approved by the FDA? Of course not. FDA approval doesn’t have anything to do with the name, though - the approval was for the use of ibandronate to treat osteoporosis in post-menopausal women. Naming approval and NDC number assignment and stuff like that comes later. In any case, you can’t get it as Bonviva in the US- it’s marketed as Boniva only, as evidenced by [Boniva.com](http://Boniva.com) webpage- but you can elsewhere. QED. ---
**Author:** ![Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/db5fbb/32.png) [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirka_T_Bawa)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/23 "2009-07-10T08:25:31Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > In any case, you can’t get it as Bonviva in the US- it’s marketed as Boniva only, as evidenced by [Boniva.com](http://Boniva.com) webpage- but you can elsewhere. QED. I see one other major difference in the advertisement, BonVIVA is tagged as ibandronate ACID, while, BonIVA is ibandronate SODIUM. Now, I don’t think there is a difference in the drug, but I can not find the prescribing literature on BonVIVA so I can see the structure. Most likely it is just a matter of different laws saying how to tag it. BonIVA is just the sodium salt of ibandronate, which is turned into the acid after absorption. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/24 "2009-07-10T08:45:43Z")
EU regulations require that the trade names for drugs not imply effectiveness or darn near anything else in any EU language. Only Manx for example uses a double-x (so hello Exxon), using other odd digraphs help meet the requirement. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/25 "2009-07-10T10:13:10Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > EU regulations require that the trade names for drugs not imply effectiveness or darn near anything else in any EU language. Only Manx for example uses a double-x (so hello Exxon), using other odd digraphs help meet the requirement. You mean Maltese, not Manx. > [@Exapno Mapcase](#): > > If it’s a generic you’re out of luck. There must be thousands of drugs that begin with, say, methyl. That’s never going to change unless we move to a wholly different method of naming conventions in basic chemistry. Don’t confuse the scientific name with the generic. Lots of scientific names begin with methyl-, but generic names are generally coined just like brand names. There probably aren’t an exceptional number of them starting with any specific syllable(s). ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/26 "2009-07-10T13:41:40Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > What do you make of the ongoing trend to include an X, a Z, or both letters in the name of brand-name prescription drugs? Are they running out of (copyrightable) names? Is it just a convention? > > One huge disadvantage to this trend - it becomes harder to differentiate drug names, which might lead to confusion and mistakes. > > If this trend reaches its logical conclusion, will there be a sleeping pill called “Zzzzzz”? not to mention there is Zocar and Cozaar … mrAru is on one and I am on the other … ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/27 "2009-07-10T14:44:30Z")
> [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](#): > > I see one other major difference in the advertisement, BonVIVA is tagged as ibandronate ACID, while, BonIVA is ibandronate SODIUM. That, and that says Bonviva is a 2.5 mg tablet (so it’s probably once daily), and Boniva is a once-monthly 150mg tablet. ---
**Author:** ![Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/db5fbb/32.png) [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirka_T_Bawa)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/28 "2009-07-11T01:59:05Z")
> [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](#): > > That, and that says Bonviva is a 2.5 mg tablet (so it’s probably once daily), and Boniva is a once-monthly 150mg tablet. Where does it say that? I see this on that site: > [@](#): > > The recommended dose of Bonviva® for treatment is one **150 mg** coated tablet, once a month. It should be taken preferably on the same day each month. (Bolding mine) So they are both 150mg once monthly. They are the same product. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/29 "2009-07-11T02:39:32Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > That’s why they never marketed Mycoxaflopin. But incredibly, [Aciphex](http://www.aciphex.com/) got the OK. Say it out loud if you don’t think it looks funny. ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/30 "2009-07-11T03:03:26Z")
Prostate drugs also have a couple that tell you what they’re for, Flomax and Rapaflo increase the flow of urine, presumably. Focalin helps you focus. Levitra levitates a part of the anatomy. (well, that one’s a stretch!) Antabuse prevents abuse of alcohol, Antivert ditto for vertigo. Aromasin is an aromatase inhibitor. (Well, again, a stretch.) And all of those “A” ones I just opened up a drug encyclopedia and started going down the list. ANYWAY, here’s a quote like one that I was trying to find to actually answer the OP’s question > [@](#): > > Marketers veer away from traditional functional names that are simply built on the company’s or inventor’s name. Today’s brand names are invented, experiential, or evocative. Developers might look for anagrams (words made from transposed letters of another word, like Halcion), or palindromes (words spelled the same backward and forward).[10] More than likely, plosives will be employed. Certain letters (P, T, D, K, Q, and hard C) give the name a strong sound that causes it to explode forcefully from the mouth. Studies have shown these letters are the most effective for marketing purposes, which is why the most common first two-letter combination in drug names is pr. [10-12] In addition, drug names are peppered with fricatives – letters like X and Z that sound fast.[10,12] (Does Ex-Lax sound fast to you?[12]) Marketers like the soft C, S, and L letters for lifestyle products from [http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/469843\_3](http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/469843_3) ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/31 "2009-07-11T07:24:39Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > A while back research was done and they found out the letter Q was rare and so it was good to use in advertising so a lot of radio stations put Q in their call letters. > > My guess is the same applies to Z and X - they are not common letters in English so they standout. Interesting, because I always noticed that FM rock radio stations often have Q, X and/or Z in the call letters. I always thought that the ultimate call sign for a rock radio station would be KQXZ. ---
**Author:** ![otorophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3ab097/32.png) [@otorophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/otorophile)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/32 "2009-07-11T12:17:28Z")
I originally read it an a WSJ article a few years ago. I couldn’t find that article, but here’s a new cite, reviewed by the Faculty of Harvard Medical School, so it seems pretty legit. [QUOTE=Dr. Shmerling] Drug names must be screened to avoid suggesting something about the drug that’s not true or that raises unrealistic expectations. For example, the FDA would never approve the name “Malignacure” because it implies that the drug might cure cancer (“maligna,” a short form of “malignant,” means cancerous). Until a cancer-curing drug is developed, this name might raise unrealistic expectations. Drug names have been rejected for less: The original name proposed for the osteoporosis drug “Boniva” was “Bonviva.” The change occurred because Bonviva, which comes from the Latin bon and viva, could be assumed to promise “good life.” The drug might make the bones stronger, but the FDA thought a good life was promising too much. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![otorophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3ab097/32.png) [@otorophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/otorophile)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/33 "2009-07-11T12:23:19Z")
[link to previous quote](http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSEAP000/9273/35328/511487.html?d=dmtHMSContent) The link is a short and fairly interesting (for the subject) read on drug naming. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/34 "2009-07-11T14:02:45Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > But incredibly, [Aciphex](http://www.aciphex.com/) got the OK. Say it out loud if you don’t think it looks funny. I timed a fart once perfectly with an AssFX commercial. It was hilarious. Sadly, I was the only one in the house at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/35 "2009-07-11T14:07:41Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > Sadly, I was the only one in the house at the time. Sad for you. Probably not so much for the hypothetical people sitting nearby. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/36 "2009-07-11T14:20:21Z")
> [@otorophile](#): > > I originally read it an a WSJ article a few years ago. I couldn’t find that article, but here’s a new cite, reviewed by the Faculty of Harvard Medical School, so it seems pretty legit. That looks like a pretty good cite so congrats for providing it. I’ll also note that it backs up my earlier contention that there are reasons that drug names have elements in common. Since the FDA seems to have approved Bonviva as Bonviva at one point, though, I’m very curious about where in the process that was decided to be unfit. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2009, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/37 "2009-07-11T15:48:03Z")
> [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](#): > > Where does it say that? Hmm. Right in **Exapno** ’s quote box it says > [@](#): > > The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Roche’s Bonviva (ibandronate) 2.5mg tablets for the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, but the product is unlikely to be launched, according to analysts at Swiss broker Sarasin. I didn’t read the full article, just what **Exapno** quoted. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488/38 "2009-07-12T04:11:58Z")
> [@HorseloverFat](#): > > No one is really confusing Viagra with Xerox. Combine the two and you’d have one hell of a party. I would’ve thought the name Halcion was chosen not because someone was playing around with an anagram, but because a halcyon mood is just what you’d want in a tranquilizer. I need to mention Enablex (an overactive bladder medication) here, partly because it fits the pattern of using an ‘X’, but also because it is the dumbest name for a drug I’ve heard in awhile. I would have picked Whizzonex. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-more-recent-name-brand-drug-names-usually-contain-xs-or-zs/502488.md?page=1)