A bottle of atorvastatin 10 mg #100 having an expiration date of 11/17 will have lost what percentage of potency when it expires?

The option stating that atorvastatin will have lost 10% of its potency by November 30, 2017, reflects an understanding of how drug potency can diminish over time as a result of degradation. Medications have specific expiration dates that indicate the end of their guaranteed potency based on stability testing under controlled conditions.

For atorvastatin and many other medications, the loss of potency is typically gradual, and it is well-accepted that some medications may retain a reasonable amount of their potency shortly after the expiration date. In this scenario, a 10% loss of potency by the end of November suggests that the drug is still within an acceptable range for therapeutic effectiveness shortly after expiration, reflecting a realistic and clinically relevant understanding of drug stability.

The other potential answers—indicating a 50% loss of potency either before or shortly after the expiration date—imply a much more significant degradation rate that does not align with the common data surrounding atorvastatin's stability. Such steep declines in potency usually are not observed so soon after expiration, especially within a month or so. Therefore, the assertion that only 10% potency is lost by the stated time reflects an appropriate expectation of the medication's shelf-life and is consistent with standard pharmacy practice regarding