DailyMed: Drug Search

Searches the U.S. DailyMed database for drug information by NDC, drug name, SPL set ID, or active ingredient. Returns both raw JSON and a human-readable summary with key fields like brand/generic name, manufacturer, dosage form, route, active ingredients, and NDC codes. Handles empty results and errors gracefully.

Usage

Use this node when you need to look up drug labeling information or metadata from the DailyMed API. Typical workflows include validating a drug by NDC, exploring products by ingredient, fetching a specific SPL record by set ID, or listing products matching a drug name. Choose a search type, provide the query, and optionally enable exact matching for tighter results.

Inputs

Field	Required	Type	Description	Example
search_type	True	ENUM	The type of DailyMed search to run. Options: ndc, drug_name, set_id, ingredient.	drug_name
query	True	STRING	The search query string. For ndc, accepts with or without hyphens; for set_id, provide the SPL Set ID; for drug_name or ingredient, provide the term to search.	aspirin
limit	True	INT	Maximum number of results to return (1–100). Ignored when search_type is set_id (returns a single record).	10
exact_match	False	BOOLEAN	If true, performs exact matching for drug_name and ingredient searches.	False
include_inactive	False	BOOLEAN	Optional flag for including inactive products. Note: This input is currently not applied to the API request.	False

Outputs

Field	Type	Description	Example
results_json	STRING	Raw JSON array (or object for set_id) of the matching DailyMed records returned by the API.	[{ "title": "ASPIRIN", "setid": "abc123...", "openfda": { "brand_name": ["Aspirin"], "generic_name": ["Aspirin"], "manufacturer_name": ["Example Pharma"] }, "active_ingredient": ["ASPIRIN"], "product_ndc": ["12345-6789"], "dosage_form": ["TABLET"], "route": ["ORAL"] }]
formatted_results	STRING	Human-readable summary of results including title, set ID, brand/generic names, manufacturer, active ingredients, NDCs (up to three listed), dosage form, and route.	DailyMed Search Results (Drug Name) ================================================== 1. Title: ASPIRIN Set ID: abc123... Brand Name: Aspirin Generic Name: Aspirin Manufacturer: Example Pharma Active Ingredients: ASPIRIN NDC Codes: 12345-6789 Dosage Form: TABLET Route: ORAL
result_count	INT	The number of results returned. For set_id searches, this is 1 if found, otherwise 0.	5

Important Notes

• Search types and endpoints: ndc, drug_name, and ingredient search the services/v2/spls.json endpoint; set_id fetches a single record via services/v2/spls/{set_id}.json.
• Exact match behavior: exact_match applies only to drug_name and ingredient searches; it is ignored for ndc and set_id.
• NDC input: Hyphens and spaces are removed before querying; both 10- and 11-digit NDCs are accepted.
• Result formatting: The formatted output lists up to the first three NDC codes per product for readability; the JSON contains full data.
• Empty results: If no matches are found, results_json is an empty array, formatted_results is "No results found", and result_count is 0.
• Error handling: Network or API errors return an error message in results_json and formatted_results, with result_count set to 0.
• include_inactive: Present as an input but not currently used in the request; it does not affect results.

Troubleshooting

• No results found: Verify the query spelling, adjust search_type, increase limit, or disable exact_match to broaden results.
• NDC not returning data: Try removing/adding hyphens; ensure the NDC is valid and active in DailyMed.
• Invalid set_id: A nonexistent or malformed set ID will yield an error or zero results; confirm the correct SPL set ID.
• Very few results with exact_match: Set exact_match to false to include partial matches.
• Network/API errors: Check internet connectivity and retry later; the node uses a 30-second request timeout.
• Large result sets: If hitting the limit, paginate by running multiple queries with different terms or refine the query.