PTC Medical Terminology - Chapter Two: Body Part Prefixes

PTC Medical Terminology. Chapter Two: Prefixes; Body Part Prefixes

Acous/o-

Hearing

Acoustic meatus; “Don’t you love hearing the acoustic guitar?”

Aden/o-

Gland

Adenoid; “My friend had his adenoid removed because the gland caused difficulty breathing.”

Adip/o-

Fat

Adipocyte; “A dip in the chocolate fountain won’t make you fat!”

Adren/o-

Gland

Adrenal Cortex

Angi/o-

Blood Vessel

Angioplasty; “My co-worker, Angie, is so annoying. I almost popped a blood vessel dealing with her.”

Arteri/o-

Artery

Arteriole

Arthr/o-

Joint

Arthroplasty; Arthritis; “Spiders, an arthropod, have many joints with all those legs!”

Bucc/o-

Cheek

Buccal cavity; “So many celebrities are having their buccal fat removed. Their faces look jarring now…”

Bronch/i-

Bronchus

Bronchioles; “I got bronchitis!”

Burs/o-

Bursa

Bursa

Bursa are small, fluid filled sacs that cushion bones, tendons, and muscles near joints.

Carcin/o-

Cancer

Basal Cell Carcinoma

Cardi/o-

Heart

Cardiology

Cephal/o-

Head

Cephalic flexure; “The zika virus can cause microencephaly in developing fetuses.”

Chol-

Bile

Cholesterol

Chondri-

Cartilage

Chrondrosarcam; right hypochondriac region

Coron-

Heart

Coronary arteries

Cost-

Rib

Costal cartilage

Crani/o-

Brain

Cranium; “Who wants to play Cranium? I heard it’s good for your brain!”

Cutane-

Skin

Cutaneous; “A cut is only skin deep.”

Cyst/o, Cysti-

Bladder or sac

Cystoscopy

Derm-, Dermat/o-

Skin

Dermatologist

Duoden/o-

Duodenum

Duodenitis; the first part of the small intestine

Gastr-

Stomach

Gastrectomy

Gloss-

Tongue

Glossectomy; “Glossolalia means speaking in tongues.”

Hem-, Hema-, Hemat-, Hemo-, Hemat/o

Blood

Hematopoiesis

Hepat/o, Hepatico

Liver

Hepatic portal system; “There is a plant called Hepatica. It is shaped like a liver. Long ago, many people believed that God designed plants to look like the body part they could heal. People harvested and ate hepatica to cure liver diseases. Now we know that Hepatica plant just looks like a liver - it does not actually cure liver diseases. Isn’t old timey medicine fun?”

Hist/o, Histio-

Tissue

Histology

Hyster/o-

Uterus

Hysterectomy

Ileo-

Ileum

Ileostomy; final section of the small intestine

Ischi/o-

Ischium

Ischial Tuberosity; a paired bone forming the lower and back part of the hip bone

Kerat/o-

Corona (eye or skin)

Keratin

Lacrim/o-

Tear (from your eyes)

Lacrimal fluid; this word is derived from the latin word ‘to cry’

Lact/o-, Lacti

Milk

Lactose

Laryng/o-

Larynx

Laryngitis; Commonly called the voice box

Lingu/o-

Tongue

Lingual Tonsil

Lip/o-

Fat

Lipolysis, “Liposuction”

Lymph/o-

Lymph

Lymphocyte; the watery fluid that flows through the lymphatic system

Mamm-, Mast/o-

Breast

Mammary glands

Mening/o-

Meninges

Meningitis; three layers of membrane that cover and protect the central nervous system

Muscul/o-

Muscle

Musculoskeletal

My/o-

Muscle

Myocardium

Myel/o-

Spinal cord or bone marrow

Myelin

Nephr/o-

Kidney

Nephron

Neur/i-, Neur/o

Nerve

Neuron

Oculo-

Eye

Oculomotor nerve

Onco-

Tumor; Bulk; Volume

Oncology; Oncogene

Onych/o-

Fingernail; Toenail

Onychodystrophy; “The onyx pokemon is shaped like a long toe and hard as a nail.”

Oo-

Egg; Ovary

Oocyte; “My son’s Korean name is Oo-Joo. The Korean word for baby sounds like ‘eggy’. I call my son Eggy Oo-Joo.”

Oophor/o-

Ovary

Oophorectomy; “Oo = egg. Phor = carrier. Oophor = egg carrier.”

Op-, Opt-

Vision

Optic nerve

Ophthalm/o-

Eye

Ophthalmic artery

Orchid/o, Orchio-

Testis

Orchidectomy

Orth/o-

Straight; Normal; Correct

Orthostatic; “Orthodox Church”

Osseo-

Boney

Osseous tissue; “Ossuary.”

Ossi-

Bone

Ossicles; “Ossuary”

Ost-, Oste/o-

Bone

Osteoporosis

Ot/o-

Ear

Otolaryngologist

Ovar/i-, Ovario-, Ovi-, Ovo

Ovary

Ovarian Follicle

Phalang-

Phalanx

Phalanges; bone of the fingers or toes

Pharyng/o-

Pharynx; Throat

Pharyngeal Tonsil

Phleb/o-

Vein

Phlebotomist

Phren/i-, Phreno-, Phrenico-

Diaphragm

Phrenic nerve; “this word is interesting as the root can mean both mind and diaphragm, like in schizophrenic. This means diaphragm though, which gives breath to the mind. See the Phragm and Phren sound similar as well.”

Pleur-, Pleur/a, Pleur/o-

Rib, Pleura

Pleural Cavity; Pleural Membrane

Pneum/a-, Pneumat/o-

Air; Lung

Pneumonia

Proct/o-

Rectum; An*s

Proctoscopy

Prostat-

Prostate

Prostatectomy

Pseudo-

False

Pseudostratified; “Pseudoscience”

Psych/o, Psyche-

Mind

Psychiatrist

Radio-

Radiation; Radius

Radioisotopes

Ren/o-

Kidney

Renal Cortex; “If you get too drunk in Reno, you might need a new Kidney!”

Retin-

Retina (of the eye)

Retinitis pigmentosa

Rhin/o-

Nose

Rhinoscope; “Rhinocerus”

Salping/o-

Tube

Salpingo-oophorectomy; “Salpingo comes from the greek word for ‘war trumpet’. Imagine the long tube of a trumpet.”

Sarco-

Muscular; Flesh-like

Sarcomere; Sarcoma

Schiz/o-

Split; Cleft

Schizophrenia

Sclera-, Sclero-

Hardness

Sclerosis

Sigmoid/o-

Sigmoid Colon

Sigmoidoscopy

Sperma-, Spermo-, Spermato-

Sperm

Spermatocyte

Splen/o-

Spleen

Splenomegaly

Sten/o-

Narrowed; Blocked

Stenosis; “you’ll need a stent for a blocked artery”

Stern-

Sternum

Sternoclavicular joint

Stom/a-, Stomat/o-

Mouth

Stomatitis

Thorac/o-, Thoracico-

Chest

Thoracic cavity; “if you have a T.Rex in your rib cage, then your chest is a thoracic park.”

Thromb/o-

Blood clot

Thrombolytic

Thyr/o-

Thyroid Gland

Thyroiditis

Trache/o-

Trachea

Trachealis

Tympan/o-

Eardrum

Tympanic membrane; “feel the tympo of the music with your eardrum”

Ur/o-

Urine

Urologist

Vagin-

Vagina

Vaginal

Varic/o-

Duct; Blood vessel

Varicose veins

Vasculo-

Blood vessel

Vasculitis

Ven/o-

Vein

Venae cavae

Vertbr-

Vertebra; Spine

Vertebral column