Glossary
Reconstitution & syringe glossary
The terms you'll see on vials, syringes, and in the calculator, in plain language.
- Bacteriostatic water
- Sterile water containing a small amount of benzyl alcohol, which slows bacterial growth. Used to dissolve lyophilized (freeze-dried) powders.
- Concentration
- How much of a substance is in each mL of liquid, usually written as mcg/mL or mg/mL.
- Insulin syringe
- A small syringe marked in units rather than mL. Common sizes are 0.3 mL, 0.5 mL, and 1 mL.
- Lyophilized
- Freeze-dried into a powder for stability. It must be dissolved (reconstituted) before measuring.
- mcg (microgram)
- One millionth of a gram. 1,000 mcg = 1 mg.
- mg (milligram)
- One thousandth of a gram. 1 mg = 1,000 mcg.
- mL (milliliter)
- A unit of volume. 1 mL = 1 cc.
- Reconstitution
- Adding a liquid to a powder to turn it into a solution with a known concentration.
- U-100
- A syringe scale with 100 units per mL. On a U-100 syringe, 10 units = 0.1 mL.
- U-40
- A syringe scale with 40 units per mL. On a U-40 syringe, 10 units = 0.25 mL.
- Unit (syringe)
- A marking on an insulin syringe. Its volume depends on the syringe scale (U-100 or U-40).