Where did medical terminology
come from?
 Most come from Greek or Latin
 As medicine advanced, more modern terms have
come from German, French and English
 Generally medical terms for determining illness or
describing surgery have Greek origins.
 Terms for parts of the body generally have Latin
roots.
Sample Medical Record
 Mrs Gravelle is an 80 year old female with deteriorating
general health. She suffers with the following chronic
conditions: blepharitis, which occludes her vision at
time; angiocele of coronary vessels causing a tachycardia
between 120-130. Frequent episodes of epistaxis. Current
complaints include SOB and congestion of the sinus and
chest area. Bilateral rales are present, nares are inflamed
with profuse rhinorrhea. Rx is BR, antibiotics QiD, 240
cc of cl liq Q1hr. Decongestant Q4h and PRN.
Pronounciation of medical terms








ch is sometimes pronounced like a k
Examples: chemoreceptor, chronic
ps is pronounced like s Examples: psychiatry, psychology
pn is pronounced with only the n sound Examples: pneumonia, pneumogastric
c and g are given the soft sound of s and j respectively Examples: cell, cilia,
genetics, Giardia

 ae and oe are pronounced ee Examples: fasciae, coelom

 i at the end of a word is pronounced eye (to form a plural) Examples: alveoli,
glomeruli

 es when forming the final letters of a word, is often pronounced as a separate
syllable Example: nares (nah’reez)
Medical Word Parts
 Prefix:Beginning part of a word preceding the word root.

Example: peri Root: Central part and determines the meaning of a word.

Example: cardi-
 Suffix: Last part of the word that changes its meaning.

Example: -itis
 Combining
A root with an added vowel for easier pronunciation.
 Form Example: rhin/o
Common Abbreviations
 Cath.
 B/P
 hs
 Spec.
 CPR
 Pc
q
 Q2h
 qod, QOD
NPO
bid
IV
Hyper ROM
po
qhs
Pt, pt
I&O
post
am, AM
fx
lab
w/c
qid, QID
amt.
dc
CA
Abbreviations (continued)
 ss
 pm, PM
 BR, br
 ax
 c/o
 ht
 liq.
 OOB, oob
c
postop
O2
stat
wt
cc
BRP
noct, noc.
OPD
bm, BM
CBC
s
dx
amb
H2O