Basic Medical Terminology Flashcards
Acute
New, usually of rapid onset and of concern, opposite of chronic
Ambulate
To walk from place to place
Anterior
Located towards the front of the body
Artery
Blood vessel carrying blood away from the heart
Benign
Normal, of no danger to health
Bradycardia
Slow heart rate
Cardiomegaly
Enlarged heart
Cholecystitis
Inflammation of the cholecyst (gallbladder)
Chronic
Long standing, constant Opposite of acute
COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Abrasion
Scrape to the skin due to an abrasion
Coronary Artery
The artery that supplies heart tissue with blood
Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA)
a.k.a. “Stroke”. Lack of blood supply to the brain causing brain damage
Diaphoresis
Sweating
Distal
Farther from the trunk of the body
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
A blood clot in a deep vein, most often an extremity
Dyspnea
Problems with breathing
Dysuria
Painful urination
Ecchymosis
Bruise
Edema
Swelling
Emesis
Vomiting
Epistaxis
Nose Bleed
Erythema/Erythematous
Redness/Red
Febrile
Elevated body temperature, fever, indicative of infection
Grossly
Obviously; a lot; wholly
Hematemesis
Very large amounts of blood in the vomit
Hemauria
Very large amounts of blood in the urine
Hemorrhage
Excessive or profuse bleeding
Hepatomegaly
Enlarged liver
Hypertension
High blood pressure
Hypotension
Low blood pressure
Hypoxia
Low oxygen saturation of the body, not enough oxygen in the blood
Infarct
Area of dead tissue after a lack of blood supply
Interior
Lower on the body, farther from the head
Ischemia
Lack of blood supply
Laceration
Splitting of the skin due to trauma (a cut due to something sharp)
Lateral
Farther from the midline (a line that can be traced from nose to belly-button)
Medial
Nearer to the midline
Melena
Black tarry stool
Myocardial Infarction (MI)
Death of cardiac muscle due to ischemia
Myalgia
Muscular pain, muscle aches
Oriented x3
Oriented to person, place, and time
Pallor
Pale skin
Posterior/Dorsal
Rear or backside of the body
Proximal
Nearer to the trunk of the body
Pruritic
Itchy
Pulmonary Embolism (PE)
Blocking of a pulmonary artery due to a blood clot.
Purulent
Pus-like
Rales
Crackles: wet crackling noise in lungs
Rhinorrhea
Clear nasal discharge, “runny nose”
Rhonchi
Rattling noise of mucous in the lungs
Sepis
Dangerous infection in the blood
STEMI
ST elevation MI, real-time ongoing death of heart tissue due to ischemia
Superior
higher on the body, near to the head
Supine
body position lying face up
Syncope
“Passing out”, loss of consciousness or fainting
Tachycardia
Fast heart rate (HR greater than 100bpm)
Tachypnea
Increased breathing rate
Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA)
Minor stroke; where neurological function is regained quickly with time
Vein
blood vessel carrying blood towards the heart
Vertigo
Condition of dizziness, “room spinning”
Wheezing
High pitched sound heard in the lungs with asthmatics or lung disease