EXAM #1 (CHAPTERS 1-3) - ALH 111 - Medical Terminology

Purpose of medical language

Be clear

Communicate quickly

Provide comfort to patients

Ancient Languages used in med term

Greek - first to study anatomy and developed theories about health and disease

Latin - global language of the scientific revolution (dead language - reliable to not change)

Modern languages

▶ German

▶ French

▶ English

Eponyms

word that is derived from a person's name

(ex. Alzheimer's Disease: Named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer, who first described the condition.)

Acronyms

letters of the words (MRI, CT, ACL)

what is the order to DECODE a MED TERM

suffix -> prefix -> root

Prefix

modifies the root (an affix attached to the beginning of a word, base word, or stem)

root word

SUBJECT (main part of the word)

Suffix

essential meaning (a letter or group of letters added to the end of a base or root word)

BREAKDOWN -> Hyperthermia

Hyper (above normal) + therm (Heat or temperature) + ia (Condition, state, or disease)

Bradycardia

Brady (slow) + card (Heart) + ia (Condition or state)

Tachypnea

Tachy (fast) + pnea (Breathing or breath)

hyrd/o

water

myc/o

fungus

necr/o

death

orth/o

straight

path/o

disease

phag/o

eat, swallow

sten/o

narrowing

troph/o

development, nourishment

xen/o

foreign, strange

SOAP

subjective

objective

assessment

plan

subjective

what the patient tells you (e.g., symptoms, feelings, history, chief complaint).

objective

measurable findings (what the clinician observes)

Assessment

interpretation (The medical diagnosis or clinical impression based on the data)

plan

what happens next (e.g., treatment, medication, follow-up, tests)

ACUTE vs CHRONIC

Acute (short/new)

Chronic (long-term)

febrile vs afebrile

Febrile (feverish)

Afebrile (not feverish)

Malaise

a general, vague feeling of discomfort, illness, uneasiness, or a lack of well-being (patients might say "im not feeling that well")

Progressive vs Exacerbation

Progressive (conditions getting worse over time)

Exacerbation (something is causing that condition to get worse over time)

symptom

treatment

Prevention

lethargy

Genetic

hereditary

noncontributory

Layers of skin

epidermis, dermis, hypodermis

Epidermis

FIRST (top) layer of skin

Dermis

SECOND (middle) layer of skin

Hypodermis

THIRD (deepest) layer of the skin

hair follicle

sac within which each hair grows

sebaceous glands

secrete sebum (oil) into the hair follicles where the hair shafts pass through the dermis

sweat glands

The glands that secrete sweat, located in the dermal layer of the skin.

Melanocytes

cells that produce melanin

Keratin

hard protein material found in the epidermis, hair, and nails

Melanin

A pigment that gives the skin its color

derm/o

dermat/o

cutane/o

SKIN

adip/o

lip/o

fat

hidr/o

sweat

onych/o

NAILS

seb/o

OIL

pil/o

HAIR

trich/o

hair or hairlike

squam/o

scale