Intro to Health Careers
Name
Ch 4 Medical Terminology -Introduction
Understanding Medical Terminology is essential to your career in Health Care, this includes medical
terms (thousands), abbreviations (hundreds) and symbols.
Medical Terminology is used in conversations with other medical professionals, charting and
documentation, and needed to read and understand medical journals and textbooks.
Misunderstandings can be harmful or even fatal. So it is very serious.
When communicating with patients, you must be careful to not use terminology that they can’t
understand. View CD Case Study
The 3 principle parts of Medical terms are Roots, Prefixes and Suffixes.
The root - that gives the main meaning to the word is often a
(Origins from Greek & Latin languages)
The Combining form consists of the root plus a vowel, usually an
It is referred to as the combining vowel.
It links the root to the suffix – if the suffix begins with a consonant.
Examples:
Gastr/o
Of
Enter/o
Common
Gastroenterology
Roots
Cardi/o
Derm/o – dermat/o
Adip/o; lip/o;
Arteri/o
Arthr/o
Axill/o
Cephal/o
Cerebr/o; encephal/o
Cervic/o
Cholecyst/o
Col/o
Cost/o
Cyst/o
Hem/o; hemat/o
Hepat/o
Ren/o; nephr/o
Laryng/o
or a
Myelo
My/o; muscul/o
Nas/o, rhin/o
Neur/o
Or/o, stomat/o
Oste/o
Ot/o
Pharyng/o
Pneum/o; pneumon/o
Thorac/o
Trache/o
Ven/o; phleb/o
Suffixes are attached to the end of a term. They include disease conditions, diagnostic procedures,
surgical procedures, pertaining to, produced by, or resembling.
All the following suffixes mean: pertaining to: -ac, -al, -ar, -ary, -eal,- iac, -ic, -ical, -ose, -ous, -tic
Write the term that uses this suffix and its meaning (CH 4 p 90)
-algia
-centesis
-cide
-cyte
-ectomy
- emia
-gram
-graph
-graphy
-ia, -ism
-itis
-lithiasis
-logy
-megaly
-oid
-oma
-otomy
-pathy
-plasty
-plegia
-pnea
-rrhea
-scope
-scopy
-stasis
-stomy
Prefixes are attached to the beginning of roots and combining forms to modify or change the root, like
an adjective. They often describe the location, position, direction, time, number, absence of, and or
color.
Write the example term and its meaning from page 92-93
a-/anantiautobibradydysepieuhemihyperhypointerintramultinonperipolypostprepseudoquadrisemisubsupratachytri-
Rules for Defining Medical Words: First, define the suffix
Second, define the prefix
Last, define the middle, or root
Abbreviations have been standardized and approved. NEVER substitute a personal abbreviation.
ad lib
t.i.d.
a.c.
Tx
b.i.d.
VS
BM
Wt.
BP
x
c
Symbols
CDC
>
c/o
<
d/c –discontinue
↑
h.
↓
H2 O
°
h.s. –at bedtime
#
I&O
‘
Lab.
“
n.p.o.
♀
n&v
♂
O2
Δ
O.D. –right eye
O.S. –left eye
O.U. –both eyes
P
p.c.
P.O.
p.r.n.
q.d. –daily
q.h.
q.i.d.
R
s
Tips: Study a few words a day Practice in new combinations Use various Study Techniques: Visual Auditory Kinesthetic Apply to Anatomy – structure Physiology – function Pathophysiology – study of the disease process Special insurance coding phrases Pharmacology – medications Extra Credit: (5 pts.) Make a list of everyday English words that have “medical” prefixes and suffixes stat.
See Table 4-10 for Study Technique suggestions
T
Complete Workbook pages,