While she has been compared to other similar goddesses, such as Ninisina and Gula, and in a number of ancient texts they appear to be syncretised with each other or are treated as interchangeable, she was nonetheless a distinct deity in her own right.
"[3] It is possible it initially had a different meaning, with one proposal being "lady of the lofty wine," and only from the reign of Uruinimgina onward it started to be written with the cuneiform sign ug5, "to die.
[4] Descriptions of Nintinugga's activity in Mesopotamian texts present her as physician, with her responsibilities including applying bandages, cleaning wounds and according to Böck specifically dealing with the musculoskeletal system.
[10] The connection might have been based on the observation of healing properties of dog saliva,[11] or on the perception of the animals as liminal and capable of interacting both with the realms of the living and the dead, similar as the goddesses associated with them.
[18] Nintinugga was also associated with Enlil[16] and could be designated as his šimmu, translated as "incantation priestess" or "sorcerer" by Joan Goodnick Westenholz,[2] but as "a type of healer and provider of medical plants" by Sibbing-Plantholt.
[22] The existence of multiple similar goddesses responsible for medicine reflected the well attested phenomenon of local pantheons typical for individual cities or regions.
[27] An association between Nintinugga and Ninisina is attested in sources from the Old Babylonian period, and might have been meant to strengthen the ties between their respective cities, Nippur and Isin.
[30] Despite the syncretistic approach, each section focuses on the individual traits of each deity,[31] and that dedicated to Nintinugga highlights both her character as a healing goddess and her connection to the underworld.
[32] However, sources from Nippur indicate that local theologians equated Gula with Ninisina, not Nintinugga, possibly due to their respective characters being more similar.
[34] A further sanctuary dedicated to her, located within the E.NI.gula (reading of the second sign uncertain) of Enlil, was the Eamirku, "pure house of stormy weather," attested in a copy of a building inscription which might have been based on an original from the reign of Ur-Nammu.
[36] Another historically notable person known to be a worshiper of this goddess was Ubartum, regarded as the best documented female practitioner of medicine in ancient Mesopotamian sources.