Medical Terminology

Week 1

Structural Components: Prefix, Root, and Suffix

  • a/an-: without, none

  • ad-: toward

  • ab-: away

  • sub-: beneath

  • dys-: painful, difficult

Vocabulary List 1

  • Acute: Sudden and relatively severe onset of a disease or disease symptoms that then subside within a short period of time.

  • Asymptomatic: without symptoms

  • Benign: not harmful, nonmalignant (not-cancerous)

  • Chronic: a slow progression of a condition that persists over a long period of time

  • Dysphagia: difficulty swallowing

  • Dyspnea: difficulty breathing

  • Extremity: the outermost part of the body, such as an arm or foot

  • Exacerbation: the relapse of a chronic condition

  • Febrile: having or showing the symptoms of a fever

  • Subcutaneous: located beneath the skin

Week 2

Structural Components: Prefix, Root, and Suffix

  • endo-: inside

  • brady-: slow

  • -ologist: an expert in a branch of science

  • epi-: upper, above

  • pulmon/o-: lung

  • tachy-: fast

Vocabulary List 2

  • Anaphylaxis: An extreme immune response to an allergen that can be potentially fatal

  • Apnea: temporary stopping of breathing

  • Bradypnea: an abnormally slow rate of breathing

  • Embolism: the occlusion of blood flow by a blood clot

  • Epistaxis: bleeding from the nose

  • Etiology: the cause of a specific disorder or disease

  • Idiopathic: of unknown cause

  • Pulmonologist: a provider who specializes in the respiratory system

  • Rhinoplasty: a surgical procedure that reshapes the nose

  • Tachypnea: an abnormally high respiratory rate

Week 3

Structural Components: Prefix, Root, and Suffix

  • angi/o: blood vessel

  • di-: both, two

  • hyper-: excessive, above, more than

  • hypo-: deficient, below, less than

  • -penia: deficiency

  • sclerosis: hardening

  • vaso-: pertaining to blood vessels

Vocabulary List 3

  • Arrhythmia: an irregular rate or rhythm of your heartbeat

  • Blood Pressure: measurement of the pressure of blood on the walls of the arteries dependent on the action of the heart

  • Diastole: the stage in the cardiac cycle during which the ventricles are relaxed and filling with blood

  • Fibrillation: an uncontrollable twitching of muscle fibers of the heart

  • Hypertension: elevated blood pressure

  • Ischemia: decrease or lack of blood supply to an organ or part due to a constriction or obstruction of the blood vessel

  • Systole: the stage of the cardiac cycle during which the ventricles contract

  • Tachycardia: an accelerated heart rate

  • Vasoconstriction: the narrowing of blood vessels

  • Vasodilation: the enlargement of blood vessels



Week 4:

bi- both, two

-plasia

the formation of cells or tissue

derm- skin

heme- relating to blood

-trophy development, growth



  1. Abrasion - a wound caused by rubbing or scraping the skin or mucous membrane

  2. Abscess - an accumulation of pus within the tissues of the body as a result of the body's defense against infection

  3. Biopsy - removal of a portion of tissue for further examination for diagnostic purposes

  4. Dysplasia - abnormal growth or development of an organ or tissue

  5. Ecchymosis - the rupture of blood vessels under the skin; bruising

  6. Edema - Abnormal accumulation of fluid in the body tissues or body cavities causing swelling or distention of the affected parts.

  7. Epidermis - the outer, thicker layer of the skin

  8. Erythema - Skin redness

  9. Hematoma - a collection of blood in a tissue that clots and then becomes encapsulated by connective tissue

  10. Jaundice - also known as icterus; it is the yellowing of the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes due to an accumulation of bilirubin


Week 5:

-oma: tumor

my/o: muscle

chondr/o: cartilage

arthr/o: joint

circum: round, around

-itis: inflammation


  1. Ambulatory - ability to walk

  2. Atrophy - the degeneration or wasting away of tissue

  3. Bursitis - a painful swelling of the bursa that is located in the joint

  4. Chondroma - a noncancerous tumor made of cartilage

  5. Hypertrophy - an increase and growth of muscle cells

  6. Lumbar - the area of the back that is located between the lowest ribs and the pelvis

  7. Myalgia - muscle pain

  8. Myositis - inflammation of the muscle characterized by pain, tenderness, and occasional spasm

  9. Myotonia - temporary muscle spasm

  10. Osteosclerosis - an increase in bone density



Week 6:


olig/o - scant, less than normal

cysto - bladder

pyelo - renal collecting

-uria- urine

Nephro - kidney


  1. Cystitis - bladder infection

  2. Cystoscopy - a procedure where a doctor looks inside te bladder and urethra

  3. Glycuresis - glucose in the urine

  4. Hydronephrosis - an abnormal condition that causes a backup of urine into the kidney

  5. Nephritis - kidney infection

  6. Oliguria - the production of an abnormally small amount of urine

  7. Polyuria - frequent urination

  8. Uresis - urination

  9. Uremia - urea in the blood

  10. Urologist - a urinary system specialist


Week 7:


mal - bad, difficult

mega - large

leuk/o - white

lymp/o - lymph tissue

lysis - destruction

thrombo - clot

  1. Compression - to apply pressure, either to reduce swelling, prevent further injury, or stop bleeding

  2. Cyanosis - blueness due to cold or not enough oxygen in the blood

  3. Hemolysis - destruction of red blood cells (erythrocytes)

  4. Leukemia - a cancer of the body's blood-forming tissues, including bone marrow and the lymphatic system

  5. Lipoma - a benign tumor of fatty tissue

  6. Lymphoma - cancer that begins in the cells of the lymph system

  7. Malaise - a general feeling of being ill or having body discomfort

  8. Megacolon - dilation and hypertrophy of the colon

  9. Thrombocytosis - elevated platelet count in the blood due to another condition

  10. Thrombosis - a condition whereby a blood clot blocks the flow of blood within a blood vessel



Week 8:

encephalo - brain

gastro - stomach

entero - intestine

hepato - liver

nephro - kidney

  1. appendicitis - inflammation of the appendix

  2. cardiomegaly - enlarged heart

  3. cirrhosis - late-stage fibrosis of the liver

  4. encephalitis - inflammation of the brain

  5. gastritis - inflammation of the lining of the stomach

  6. gastroenteritis - inflammation of the stomach and the intestines

  7. hepatitis - inflammation of the liver

  8. hepatomegaly - enlarged liver

  9. nephrosis - kidney disease

  10. splenomegaly - enlarged spleen



Week 9:

-oid        like, similar

-ation - process, condition

retro - backward, behind

contra - against

 

  1. Antagonist - medication that counteracts the actions and properties of another

  2. Carcinoma - cancer of the epithelial tissue

  3. Chancroid - a sexually transmitted infection

  4. Contraindication - any reason for a client to not receive treatment, medication, or procedure due to being harmful to the client

  5. Gastromegaly - enlarged stomach

  6. Hemorrhoid - dilated and often painful veins in the anal tissue

  7. Hypothyroidism - when the thyroid does not produce enough thyroid hormones

  8. Palliative - treatment is given to alleviate disease symptoms, but there is no cure for it. 

  9. Retrograde Amnesia - amnesia in which the lack of memory relates to events that occurred before a traumatic event

  10. Thrombocytopenia - low thrombocyte (platelet) count in the blood

 


Week 10:


tele - distant, far

trans - across

ecto - outside

hemi - half

inter - between

  1. anemia - hemoglobin (red blood cells) levels that are lower than normal

  2. ectoplasm - the outer part of the cytoplasm

  3. ectopic - an abnormal location of an organ or body part

  4. endoscope - an instrument used to visualize the inside of the body cavity or ogan

  5. hemiparesis - one-sided muscle weakness

  6. intercostal - between the ribs

  7. tachyarrhythmia - any disturbance in the heart's rhythm resulting in a rate over 100 beats per min

  8. tachyphylaxis - rapid decrease in the response to a drug following repeated administration

  9. telemetry - transmission of device readings to a remote source

  10. transabdominal - across the abdominal wall or through the abdominal cavity



Week 11:


Approximate - bringing two surfaces together, close

2. Capacity- ability, capability, aptitude, role, power, size

3. Compensate - to counteract or adjust to an imbalance or stressor

4. Deficit - deficiency or lack of something

5. Exhibit - shows signs of, reveal, display

6. Interpret - analyzing and understanding data, signs, and symptoms

7. Mobilize- activate, organize, assemble, gather

8. Priority - order of importance or urgency

9. Radiate - the spread of a sensation from one area of the body to another

10. Utilize - to make use of something in a purposeful, meaningful, or effective way