Language of Medicine - Chapter 4: Combining forms, Suffixes, Prefixes

carp/o

wrist bones

cis/o

to cut

cost/o

rib

cutane/o

skin

dactyl/o

fingers, toes

duct/o

to lead, carry

flex/o

to bend

gloss/o

tongue

glyc/o

sugar

immun/o

protection

morph/o

shape, form

mort/o

death

nat/i

birth

norm/o

rule, order

ox/o

oxygen

pub/o

pubis (pubic bone); anterior portion of the pelvic or hipbone

seps/o

infection

somn/o

sleep

son/o

sound

the/o

to put, place

thel/o, theli/o

nipple

thyr/o

thyroid gland; shield (the shape of the thyroid gland resembled [-oid] a shield to those who named it)

top/o

place, position, location

tox/o

poison

trache/o

windpipe, trachea

urethr/o

urethra

-blast

embryonic, immature

-crine

to secrete (to give off)

-drome

to run

-fusion

coming together; to pour

-gen

substance that produces

-lapse

to slide, fall, sag

-lysis

breakdown, destruction, separation

-meter

to measure

-mission

to send

-or

one who

-oxia

oxygen

-partum

birth, labor

-phoria

to bear, carry; feeling (mental state)

-physis

to grow

-plasia

development, formation, growth

-plasm

structure or formation

-pnea

breathing

-ptosis

falling, drooping, prolapse

-rrhea

flow, discharge

-stasis

stopping, controlling

-trophy

development, nourishment

a-, an-

no, not, without

-apnea: temporary cessation of breathing, especially during sleep:

ab-

away from

-abnormal: away from normal

ad-

toward

-adductor: A muscle that draws a limb toward the body. HINT Notice that in adductor, the d faces toward the a.

ana-

up, apart

-anaylsis: Urinalysis is a laboring examination of urine that aids in the diagnosis of many medical conditions. In this term, -lysis means separation.

ante-

before, forward

-ante cibum: The word cibum means meals. The notion a.c. seen on prescription orders, means before meals. You can guess that p.c. means after (post) meals.

anti-

against

-antibiotic: Antibiotics destroy or inhibit the growth of microorganisms such as bacteria. Penicillin was the first antibiotic discovered in immature plants called molds, and was in widespread use by the 1940s.

auto-

self, own

-autoimmune disease: the body makes antibodies against its own good cells and tissues, causing inflammation and injury.

bi-

two

-bifurcation: Normal splitting into two branches, such as bifurcation of the trachea to form the bronchi.

brady-

slow

-bradycardia: Usually, a pulse of less than 60; a slow heart rate. Tachycardia (tachy- means fast) is a pulse of more than 100 beats per minute.

cata-

down

-catabolism: the breakdown of complex molecules in living organisms to form simpler ones

con-

with, together

-connective: The root nect means to tie or bind. Connective tissue supports and binds other body tissue and parts. Bone, cartilage, and fibrous tissue are connective tissues.

contra-

against, opposite

-contraindication: contra- means against in this term.

de-

down, lack of

-dehydration: lack of water

dia-

through, complete

-diarrhea: complete flow

dys-

bad, painful, difficult, abnormal

-dyspnea: Often caused by respiratory or cardiac conditions, strenuous exercise, or anxiety

ec-

out, outside

-ectopic pregnancy: Ectopic means pertaining to out of the place and modifies the noun "pregnancy."

endo-

in, within

-endocardium: the thin, smooth membrane that lines the inside of the chambers of the heart and forms the surface of the valves.

epi-

upon, on, above

-epithelium: the thin tissue forming the outer layer of a body's surface and lining the alimentary canal and other hollow structures.

eu-

good, normal

-euphoria: feeling of well-being

ex-

out, outside

-exophthalmos: Protrusion of the eyeball associated with enlargement and overactivity of the thyroid gland; also called proptosis (pro= forward, -ptosis = prolapse)

hemi-

half

-hemiglossectomy: Surgical removal of one half of the tongue.

hyper-

excessive, above

-hyperglycemia: This is a sign of diabetes mellitus. Lack of insulin (type 1 diabetes) or ineffective insulin (type 2 diabetes) causes high levels of sugar in the blood.

hypo-

deficient, under

-hypodermic injection: pertaining to water under the skin through force?

in-

not

-insomniac: regularly unable to sleep.

in- (2)

into, within

-incision: the process of cutting into

infra-

beneath, under

-infracostal: situated beneath the ribs

inter-

between

-intercostal: Intercostal muscles lie between adjacent ribs.

intra-

in, within, into

-intravenous: existing or taking place within, or administered into, a vein or veins

macro-

large

-macrocephaly: This is a congenital anomaly

mal-

bad

-malaise: This is a French word meaning discomfort. It is a symptom of illness often marking the onset of a disease.

meta-

beyond, change

-metacarpal bones: The five hand bones lie beyond the wrist bones but before the finger bones (phalanges).

micro-

small

-microscope: instrument to examine small things

neo-

new

-neonatal: The neonatal period is the interval from birth to 28 days

pan-

all

-pancytopenia: Deficiency of erythrocytes, leukocytes, and thrombocytes.

para-

abnormal, beside, near

-paralysis: Abnormal disruption of the connection between nerve and muscle. Originally from the Greek paralusis, meaning separation or loosening on one side, describing the loss of movement on one side of the body (occuring in stroke patients).

per-

through

-percutaneous: any medical procedure where access to inner organs or other tissue is done via needle-puncture of the skin, rather than by using an "open" approach where inner organs or tissue are exposed

peri-

surrounding

-pericardium: the membrane enclosing the heart

poly-

many, much

-polymorphonuclear: having a nucleus with several lobes and a cytoplasm that contains granules

post-

after, behind

-postmortem: an examination of a dead body to determine the cause of death

pre-

before, in front of

-precancerous: likely to develop into cancer if untreated

pro-

before, forward

-prodrome: Prodromal signs and symptoms (rash, fever) appear before the actual illness (such as chickenpox) and signal its onset. Altered mood, fatigue, flashes of light, or stiff muscles may accompany the prodromal migraine aura that occurs before the actual headache.

pros-

before, forward

-prosthesis: an artificial limb is a prosthesis.

re-

back, again

-relapse: A disease or its signs and symptoms return after an apparent recovery.

retro-

behind, backward

-retroflexion: An abnormal position of an organ, such as the uterus, bent or tilted backward.

sub-

under

-subcutaneous: situated or applied under the skin

supra-

above, upper

-suprapubic: The pubis is one of a pair of pubic bones that forms the anterior part of the pelvic (hip) bone.

syn-, sym-

together, with

-synthesis: In protein synthesis, complex proteins are built up from simpler amino acids.

tachy-

fast

-tachypnea: abnormally rapid breathing.

trans-

across, through

-transfusion: Transfer of blood or blood parts from one person to another.

ultra-

beyond, excess

-ultrasonography: a technique using echoes of ultrasound pulses to delineate objects or areas of different density in the body.

uni-

one

-unilateral: relating to, occurring on, or affecting only one side of an organ or structure, or of the body.