MED 111 B
MED 111 B:
Medical Terminology
Andrew D. Cummins
MED 111 B
Class goals
My goals are to:
• Enhance your professional medical vocabulary
• Illustrate the history and development of medical terms
• Show how root words are combined and manipulated with prefixes and
suffixes to form new descriptive words
• Give you a working knowledge of Latin and Greek (believe it or not!)
• Teach appreciation of the medical vocabulary
• Show how this vocabulary is used and how to remember terms easily
while avoiding pitfalls – while having fun learning this new language
MED 111 B
Class Structure
• Quiz every week (except the first week and
exam weeks)
• 2 exams:
– 1 midterm covering Chapters 1-6
– 1 final covering Chapters 1-14 (weighted mostly with
chapters 6-14)
• 1 Research assignment, to be discussed in
class.
• Class participation is important (i.e. attendance
and staying focused)
MED 111 B
Just a few ground rules…
• Do not disrupt the class (either by conversation, leaving
your cell phone on, etc.)
• Respect your fellow students
• Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated!
• Contact me immediately if you have any concerns
LABOR OMNIA VINCIT
(hint: know what this means, it may come up later)
MED 111 B
This is a relaxed but professional classroom
environment
• At any time, feel free to raise your hand and ask
questions (as long as they are on topic).
• Please stop me if you feel I am going too fast, or you
feel the material is not being presented in a clear
manner.
• If you feel I’ve made a mistake, please let me know.
• Your questions help you, me, and your fellow students
and are a valuable part of the learning process.
MED 111 B
Know your Prof.
• Research scientist and engineer
• Experience with classical Latin
• Consultant in electrical and
biomedical technology
Also… part-time blues musician and ninja!
(OK, maybe not exactly true on the ninja
part…)
MED 111 B
Lecture 1, Chapter 1
Important concepts in medical terminology:
• Word root ( main word(s) )
• Prefix (goes at the beginning of the word)
• Suffix (goes at the end of the word)
• Combining vowels and combined forms
MED 111 B
Word root
• In this course you will notice a heavy emphasis on Latin
and Greek. Some of these words you may already
recognize, most you will not be familiar with (after all, this
is why you’re here!)
• This is due to the history of medical and biological
science. In the past, Latin and Greek were common
languages that joined together researchers and
practitioners from different backgrounds. For example, if
one person spoke Italian and one person spoke English
they would learn Latin and Greek as a common unifying
language.
MED 111 B
Word Root
This part of a medical term typically describes the
overall nature of the subject matter.
For example: the root cardi generally refers to the
heart.
There may be more than one word root – such as
cardiovascular – referring to both the heart and
circulatory system (arteries, veins, and all that).
MED 111 B
Combining Vowels and Combined Forms
Notice in the previous example the roots cardi and
vascular were combined by using a vowel (in this
case, the letter ‘o’ ).
Combining vowels are used in two places –
between two or more word roots, and between a
wood root and its suffix (ending).
MED 111 B
Combining Vowels and Combined Forms
Deciding when to use combining vowels:
Look at the word’s suffix (ending).
1. Does it start with a vowel? If so, do not
use a combining vowel.
2. Does it start with a consonant? If so,
use a combining vowel.
MED 111 B
Combining Vowels and Combined Forms
Example: Root word arthr
Arthroscope
The suffix ‘scope’ begins with a consonant
(s), so we do need to use a combining vowel
(o).
Arthritis
The suffix ‘itis’ already begins with a vowel
(i), so no combining vowel is necessary.
MED 111 B
Combining Vowels and Combined Forms
Combining or combined form. It is often times
simpler to pronounce and use a root word with its
combined vowel.
Example: cardio rather than cardi. Many of you
have probably heard this before as an abbreviation
for cardiovascular (as in a good ‘cardio’ workout
rather than a good ‘cardi’ workout).
Source: ufl.edu
MED 111 B
Prefixes
Prefixes are generally added to the beginning of a
term to give important qualifying information about
the term.
That is, the prefix will give you another clue as to
what we are trying to say about the root word. In
medical terminology, this is of extreme importance.
MED 111 B
Prefixes
Example: a prefix might give the location of
something (med -> middle), the number or amount
of something (bi -> 2, tri -> 3), or the duration over
which something takes place (tachy -> fast).
You will learn many prefixes in this course, many
you may have heard (bi, biannual -> occurring
twice a year) and some you may have not (tachy,
tachycardia -> fast heart rhythm).
For a list of common prefixes, see pages 4-6 of your textbook.
MED 111 B
Suffixes
Suffixes are generally added to the end of a term
to impart meaningful information about the term.
A suffix frequently gives you a clue as to the types
of procedures, conditions, or diseases related to a
medical word root.
MED 111 B
Suffixes
A suffix is the last way to add meaning to a term,
it’s therefore one of the most important.
A great example we are all familiar with is the
suffix itis, which refers to inflammation. We see this
suffix everywhere we turn in medicine – from
arthritis (inflammation of the joints) and
appendicitis (inflammation of the appendix) to
senioritis (OK, maybe not everywhere is exactly
appropriate).
For a list of common suffixes, see pages 6-8 of your textbook.
MED 111 B
Putting it all together…
Combining a prefix, word root, suffix, and
combining vowel(s) if necessary.
If we keep in mind these 4 major portions of most
medical terms, we can say just about anything
about any condition with a single (albeit
complicated) word.
MED 111 B
…and more importantly, taking it all apart.
Therefore, if we can identify the 4 major parts of a
medical term, we can attack each separately –
leaving no chance for the term to sneak up on us!
By ‘disassembling’ medical terms you will
learn to quickly determine the meaning of
complicated medical and scientific
terminology. Plus you get to impress your
friends with your new found vocabulary and
nod knowingly the next time you watch
House, M.D.
MED 111 B
Questions
?
MED 111 B
Assignment
• Read Chapter 1 – Introduction to Medical Terminology
• Complete the review at the end of the
chapter to prepare for the quiz (do not turn in)
•Optional but highly suggested
Complete the exercises for your textbook at:
http://www.prenhall.com/fremgen
•Course Website:
http://med111b.wordpress.com
LABOR OMNIA VINCIT
(know what this means)