Medical Terminology (OT 200)

USC OT 200 Medical Terminology for Health Professions Full Semester Flashcards -- Each chapter is divided by divider flashcards (*Some terms may be repeated if they appear in multiple chapters*)

-algia

pain; suffering

dys-

bad; difficult; painful

-ectomy

surgical removal; cutting out

hyper-

excessive; increased

hypo-

deficient; decreased

-itis

inflammation/Infection

-osis

abnormal condition; disease

-ostomy

Surgical creation of an artifical opening to the body surface

-otomy

cutting; surgical incision

-plasty

surgical repair

-rrhage/-rrhagia

bleeding; abnormal excessive fluid discharge

-rrhaphy

surgical suturing

-rrhea

flow; discharge

-rrhexis

rupture

-sclerosis

abnormal hardening

Abdominocentesis

Surgical puncture of the abdominal cavity to remove fluid.

Acronym

Word fromed from the initial letter of the major parts of a compound term

Acute

Rapid; short; severe

Angiography

Process of producing a radiographic study of blood vessels

Appendectomy

Surgical removal of the appendix

Arteriosclerosis

Abnormal hardening of the walls of an artery(ies)

Arthralgia

Joint(s) pain

Colostomy

Surgical creation of an artificial excretory opening between the colon and body surface.

Cyanosis

Blue discoloration of the skin caused by a lack of adequate oxygen in the blood.

Dermatologist

Physician who specializes in diagnosing and treating skin disorders

Diagnosis

Identification of a disease

Diarrhea

Frequent flow of loose or watery stools

Edema

Swelling caused by an abnormal accumulation of fluid in cells, tissues, or body cavities

Endarterial

Within an artery or pertaining to the inside of an artery

Eponym

Disease, structure, operation, or procedure named for the person who discovered or described it first

Erythrocyte

A mature red blood cell

Fissure

Groove or crack-like sore of the skin

Fistula

Abnormal passage

Gastralgia

Pain in the stomach (stomachache)

Gastritis

Inflammation of the stomach

Gastroenteritis

Inflammation of the stomach and small intestine

Gastrosis

Any disease of the stomach

Hemorrhage

Loss of a large amount of blood in a short time

Hepatomegaly

Abnormal enlargement of the liver

Hypertension

Blood pressure that is higher than normal

Hypotension

Blood pressure that is lower than normal

Infection

Invasion of the body by a pathogenic organism

Inflammation

Localized response to an injury or to the destruction of tissues

Interstitial

Between parts of tissue

Intramuscular

Within the muscle

Laceration

Torn or jagged wound or an accidental cut

Lesion

Pathologic change of tissues due to disease or injury

Malaise

Feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness that is often the first indication of infection/disease

Mycosis

Abnormal condition or disease caused by fungus

Myelopathy

Pathologic change or disease in the spinal cord

Myopathy

Pathologic change or disease of muscle tissue

Myorrhexis

Rupture of a muscle

Neonatology

Study of disorders of the newborn

Neurorrhaphy

Suturing together the ends of a severed nerve

Otorhinolaryngology

Study of the throat, nose, and ears

Palpation

Examination technique in which examiner’s hands are used to feel the texture, size, consistency, and location of certain body parts

Palpitation

Pounding or racing heart

Pathology

Study of all aspects of disease(s)

Phalanges

Bones of the fingers and toes

Poliomyelitis

Viral infection of the gray nerve tissue of the spinal cord

Prognosis

Prediction of the probable course and outcome of a disease

Pyoderma

Acute, inflammatory, pus-forming bacterial skin infection

Pyrosis

Discomfort due to the regurgitation of stomach acid upward into the esophagus

Remission

Temporary, partial, or complete disappearance of symptoms without having achieved a cure

Sign

Objective evidence of disease

Supination

Act of rotating the arm so the palm of the hand is facing forward/upward

Suppuration

Formation or discharge of pus

Supracostal

Above or outside the ribs

Symptom

Subjective evidence of a disease

Syndrome

Set of signs and symptoms that occur together as part of a specific disease process

Tonsillitis

Inflammation of the tonsils

Trauma

Wound or injury

Triage

Medical screening of patients to determine their relative priority of need and their proper place of treatment

Viral

Pertaining to a virus

What is the difference between signs and symptoms?

Signs are objective, while symptoms are subjective.

Word root

Contains basic meaning of the term

Combining form

Word root with a combining vowel at the end

A word root (can/cannot) stand alone.

Cannot

When should a combining form be created by adding a vowel?

A suffix beginning with a consonant is added to the word root.

A prefix always goes at the _____ of the word.

Beginning

A suffix always goes at the _____ of the word.

End

Suffixes usually indicate:

Procedures, conditions, disorders, or disease.

Prefixes usually indicate:

Location, time, number, or status.

Cyan/o

blue

Erythr/o

Red

Leuk/o

White

Melan/o

Black

Poli/o

Gray

Myel/o

Spinal Cord or Bone Marrow

Leukocyte

A white blood cell

Melanosis

Any condition of unusual deposits of black pigment in body tissues and/or organs

Gastr/o

Stomach

Enter/o

Small intestine

Neur/o

Nerve

Tonsill

Tonsils

Tonsillectomy

Surgical removal of the tonsils

Cranium

Portion of the skull that encloses the brain

Crani

Skull

Cardi

Heart

Suffixes as Noun Endings:

-a; -e; -um; -us; -y