Health Care Terminology

-meant

to make firm or solid

word root

main part or foundation (usually indicate body part)

combining forms

vowel added to word root (usually an o)

when is a combining vowel used

before a suffix starts with a consonant

(or before a vowel but sometimes not)

Suffixes

added to the end of a word root or combining form to modify its meaning

adjective suffix

indicate part of speech or a singular or plural form

suffixes that mean “pertaining to” or “relating to”

-ac,-al, -a, -ary, -eal, -ic, -ical, -ory, -ous, -tic

-ia, -ism, -y

condition of

-iatry

treatment

-is

forms a noun from a root

-ist

specialist

small, minute

-ole, -icle, -ula, -ule

prefixes

before a word or root and will change the meaning

hypo

under, below

intra

within

peri

around

pre

before

epi

above

chondr/o

cartilage

cyt/o

cell

hist/o

tissue

nucle/o

nucleus

anter/o

anterior, front

poste/o (er/o)

back, behind

cephal/o

head

caud/o

tail

dist/o

far, farthest

proxim/o

near, nearest

later/o

side, to one side

medi/o

middle

infer/o

lower,below

ventr/o

belly,belly side

dors/o

back

median/midsagittal

left and right

transverse/cross section

top and bottom

frontal/coronal

front and back

-ad

toward

-logy

study of

-logist

one who specializes in the study of

-lysis

separation, destruction, loosening

-plasia

forming, developing

-toxic

poison, pertaining to poison

abdomin/o

abdomen

gastr/o

stomach

umbilic/o

umbilicus, navel

cephal/o

head

cervic/o

neck, cervix

crani/o

cranium, skull

ili/o

ilium

inguin/o

groin

lumb/o

loins, lower back

pelv/o

pelvis

spin/o

spine

thorac/o

chest

dorsal body cavities

cranial, spinal

ventral body cavities

thoracic, abdominopelvic (abdominal and pelvic)

Abdominopelvic quadrants

right upper, left upper, right lower, left over (in terms of individuals body, not you as an outsider looking at body)

Abdominopelvic regions

right hypochondriac region, epigastric region, left hypochondriac region, right lumbar region, umbilical region, left lumbar region, right inguinal (iliac) region, hypogastric region, left inguinal (iliac) region

Right upper quadrant

liver, right kidney, gall bladder, colon, pancreas

Left upper quadrant

stomach, left kidney, spleen, colon, pancreas

Right lower quadrant

appendix, colon, small intestine, ureter, major vein and artery to right leg

Left lower quadrant

colon, small intestine, ureter, major vain and artery to left leg

Integumentary System

Skin, hair, nails, sebaceous and sweat glands

Skin

cutano/o, derm/o, dermat/o

Hair

pil/o, trich/o

Nail

onych/o, ungu/o

Sweat

hidr/o

Water

hydr/o

Fat

adip/o, lip/o, steat/o

Dry

xer/o

Fungus

myc/o

Dead, death

necr/o

Hardening

scler/o

Horny tissue

kerat/o

Erythr/o

red

Leuk/o

white

Cyan/o

blue

Xanth/o

yellow

Melan/o

black

Skin

-derma

Softening

-malacia

Decrease

-penia

Self

aut/o

Strange/foreign

xen/o

Heter/o

different

All/o

diverge

Discolored dried sebum blocks skin excretory ducts

Comed/o, comed/ic

Abnormal condition of

-osis

Out

ec-

To pour

chym/o

Tiny purple/red hemorrhagic spots on dermal or submucosal layer of skin

Petechia/e

Inflammation of the skin with redness, itching, blisters, and cracking

eczema

Biopsy

bx

Diagnosis

dx

History

hx

HPI

history of present illness

5 signs of inflammation

rubor, dolor, caller, tumor, loss of function

Redness

rubor

Pain

dolor