Foundation year
MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY
T.SANAA ABDELHAMED
Medical Terms Related To Radiography
 Radioactive: substance whose nucleus disintegrates and
gives off energy in the form of radiation which can pass
through other substances.
 Radiation: waves of energy which are given off by certain
substances, especially radioactive substances and by x-ray
machines. The combining form is radi/o.
 Radiography: means examining the internal parts of the
patient by taking x-ray pictures. The combining form
radi/o means radiation. And the suffix –graphy means an
x- ray examination.
 Radiologist: a doctor who specializes in radiology.
 Radiograph: an x-ray picture.
 Radiographer: a person specially trained to operate a
machine to take radiograph.
 Tomography: scanning a particular part of the body using
x-ray or ultrasound. The prefix tomo- means a cutting or
section.
 Computerized Axial Tomography (CAT): a system of scanning
a patient’s body, where a narrow x-ray beam, guided by a computer, can
photograph a thin section of the body or of an organ from several
angles, using the computer to build up an image of the section.
 Ultrasound: means very high frequency sound wave. The prefix
ultra- means very high. Ultrasonic is the adjective form of ultrasound.
 Angiocardiogram: x-ray image of blood
vessels and heart chambers. The suffix
–gram means record or picture.
 Angiocardiography: x-ray examination
of the arteries of the heart after
introducing a radio-opaque contrast
medium into the coronaries by means of
a catheter.

Angiography: an x-ray examination of blood vessels.

Arthrography: an x-ray examination of joints. Arthr/o means joint.

Lymphangiography: an x-ray examination of lymph vessels and
nodes after the contrast medium has been injected into them.
 Contrast medium: a radio-opaque substance, put into an
organ or part of the body so that it will show clearly in an x-
ray photograph. The plural is contrast media.
 Bronchogram: x-ray film of the bronchi.
 Cholecystogram: x-ray picture of the gall bladder.
 Cholecystogrphy: x-ray examination of the gall bladder.
 Pyelogram: x-ray picture of the renal pelvis.
 Magnetic: means having the attraction of magnet.
 Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): scanning technique
for examining soft body tissue and cells.
 Fluoroscope: an instrument which projects an x-ray image
of a part of the body onto a screen, so that the part of the body
can be examined as it moves. The combining form fluor/o
means luminous. The suffix –scope means to see.
 Barium: means chemical element, used in the form of
barium sulphate as a contrast medium when taking x-ray
photographs of the gastrointestinal tract.
 Barium sulphate: salt of barium not soluble in water
shows as opaque in x-ray photographs.
 Barium enema: means liquid solution containing barium
sulphate which is put into the rectum so that an x-ray can
be taken of the lower intestine.
 Barium meal: means a liquid solution containing barium
sulphate which a patient drinks to increase the contrast of an xray of the alimentary tract.