A reader asked us a short question about a vitamin injectable: can it be given IM, or only IV? We are a distributor, so the answer is not ours to give. It is the licence's. Every Korean prescription medicine has a dosage document filed with its licence, and the route is written into it. For six injectables in our range, here is what that document says, going strictly by the licence.
Route, as written on six Korean licences
| Product | Ingredient | Intravenous (IV) | Intramuscular (IM) | Subcutaneous (SC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CINDELLA | Thioctic acid | Listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| LIPOTOCIN | Thioctic acid tromethamine | Listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| MELSMON | Human placenta extract | Not listed | Not listed | Listed |
| JBP PLAMON | Human placenta extract | Not listed | Not listed | Listed |
| BC ASCORBIC | Ascorbic acid | Listed | Listed | Listed |
| DETOXIONE 1200 | Reduced glutathione | Listed (as a drip) | Listed | Not listed |
Two of the six list IM. Four do not. The split does not follow the ingredient family in an obvious way: the two thioctic acid products are both IV only, the two placenta extracts are both subcutaneous only, and the ascorbic acid and glutathione products each list more than one route.
Where the route is written
A Korean drug licence on the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) register carries several filed documents. The one that answers this question is the dosage and administration document. It states, in one or two sentences, how the medicine is given, and the route word is part of that sentence: intravenous, intramuscular, subcutaneous.
Those sentences also give amounts, frequencies and, for some products, how the medicine is diluted and how fast it is given. We do not repeat those parts. They are instructions for the prescriber, and a distributor restating them would be giving treatment directions. The route word on its own is a fact about how the product is licensed, and it is the part the question asked about.
The same ingredient can be licensed for different routes
CINDELLA and LIPOTOCIN are both thioctic acid injections, and both are licensed for intravenous use only. That is consistent. The placenta pair is consistent too: MELSMON and JBP PLAMON are both licensed for subcutaneous injection, and neither lists IM or IV.
The pattern does not hold across the whole register, though. Other placenta products on the same register list both subcutaneous and intramuscular use. A route that is true for one product is not automatically true for another product with the same ingredient. The answer belongs to the licence, not to the ingredient, which is why the reader's question has to be answered product by product.
How to check a route yourself
The MFDS drug register is public. Search the product's Korean name, open the licence, and the dosage document is attached as a PDF. The route is in its first sentence. Our guide to what prescription-only means when you import explains the classification line that sits beside it on the same record.
Sourcing Korean vitamin injectables by licence
KSTATION supplies all six products in this table within our vitamins and injectables collection, including BC ASCORBIC, DETOXIONE 1200 and CINDELLA. Each is a prescription medicine for administration by a healthcare professional.
Frequently asked
Is CINDELLA given IV or IM?
Going strictly by its Korean licence, CINDELLA is listed for intravenous injection. The dosage document does not list intramuscular or subcutaneous use.
What route does the Korean licence state for MELSMON?
Subcutaneous injection. The licence's dosage document does not list intramuscular or intravenous use.
Sources and references
- Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), drug register, dosage and administration documents for licences 201206777, 200704403, 200308393, 200708605, 200909290 and 201507889, retrieved 23 October 2026.
- KSTATION editorial policy.
Routes are as stated on the licences on 23 October 2026. This article reports how products are licensed. It is not a treatment instruction, and doses, frequencies and preparation are deliberately not reproduced.
