Dénomination Commune Française

Dénomination Commune Française (DCF) is a system used in France for the generic naming of pharmaceutical substances. It is managed by the Agence nationale de sécurité du médicament et des produits de santé (ANSM), the French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products Safety. The DCF is equivalent to the International Nonproprietary Name (INN) system used internationally.

Overview

The DCF system was established to provide a standardized nomenclature for pharmaceutical substances. This is to ensure that healthcare professionals and patients can accurately identify and communicate about specific drugs, regardless of brand name. The DCF is used in all official documents and databases related to medicines in France.

Each DCF name is unique and is assigned to a specific active ingredient. The names are chosen to be clear, concise, and easy to remember, and they often reflect the chemical structure or pharmacological properties of the substance.

Process of DCF Naming

The process of assigning a DCF name to a new pharmaceutical substance begins when a pharmaceutical company submits an application to the ANSM. The application must include detailed information about the substance, including its chemical structure, pharmacological properties, and proposed uses.

The ANSM reviews the application and, if it is approved, assigns a DCF name to the substance. The name is then published in the Journal officiel de la République française, the official journal of the French Republic.

Comparison with Other Naming Systems

While the DCF system is specific to France, it is similar to other pharmaceutical naming systems used around the world. The most widely used system is the INN, which is managed by the World Health Organization (WHO). Like the DCF, the INN system assigns unique names to pharmaceutical substances, but it is used internationally rather than in a specific country.

See Also

• International Nonproprietary Name
• United States Adopted Name
• British Approved Name
• Japanese Accepted Name