Sterile Processing Medical Terminology

Flashcards covering medical prefixes, suffixes, roots, sterile processing terms, operating room terminology, and infection-related vocabulary.

A-/An-

Without (Example: Aseptic = without germs)

Anti-

Against (Example: Antibacterial)

Brady-

Slow (Example: Bradycardia)

Tachy-

Fast (Example: Tachycardia)

Hyper-

High (Example: Hypertension)

Hypo-

Low (Example: Hypoglycemia)

Peri-

Around (Example: Perioperative)

Post-

After (Example: Postoperative)

Pre-

Before (Example: Preoperative)

Sub-

Under (Example: Subcutaneous)

Trans-

Across (Example: Transfusion)

Intra-

Within (Example: Intravenous)

-ectomy

Removal (Example: Appendectomy)

-itis

Inflammation (Example: Arthritis)

-ology

Study of (Example: Cardiology)

-oma

Tumor (Example: Lipoma)

-osis

Condition (Example: Cyanosis)

-pathy

Disease (Example: Neuropathy)

-plasty

Surgical repair (Example: Rhinoplasty)

-scope

Instrument to look (Example: Endoscope)

-scopy

Procedure of looking (Example: Colonoscopy)

-tomy

Cutting into (Example: Tracheotomy)

-stomy

New opening (Example: Colostomy)

Cardio

Heart

Derm

Skin

Neuro

Nerves

Osteo

Bone

Arthro

Joint

Gastro

Stomach

Entero

Intestine

Hepato

Liver

Nephro

Kidney

Pulmo/Pneumo

Lung

Hemo/Hemato

Blood

Myo

Muscle

Cephalo

Head

Ophthalmo

Eye

Ot/o

Ear

Aseptic

Free of germs

Sterile

Free of microorganisms

Contaminated

Exposed to germs

Decontamination

Removing germs

Disinfection

Kills most germs

Sterilization

Kills all microorganisms

Bioburden

Microorganisms on an instrument

Biofilm

Sticky bacterial layer

PPE

Personal Protective Equipment

Cross-contamination

Spread of germs

Event-related sterility

Sterility lasts until package is compromised

Incision

Surgical cut

Excision

Removal

Suture

Stitches

Retract

Pull tissue back

Clamp

Hold tissue

Ligate

Tie off blood vessel

Irrigate

Wash with fluid

Suction

Remove fluids

Hemostasis

Stop bleeding

Anastomosis

Connect two structures

Pathogen

Disease-causing germ

Bacteria

Single-celled microorganism

Virus

Infectious particle

Fungus

Mold or yeast

Spore

Hardy bacterial form

Infection

Invasion by germs

Colonization

Germs without illness

Sepsis

Body-wide dangerous infection

Nosocomial

Hospital-acquired infection