Introduction To Healthcare Terminology Flashcards
gloss/o
Tongue
-ary
Pertaining to
-itis
Inflammation
bi-
Two
lingu/o
Tongue
-al
Pertaining to
sub-
Under, below
Combining Form
Word root with it’s respective combining vowel
Word Root
Word origin
Suffix
Word part that appears at the end of a term
Prefix
Word part that sometimes appears at the beginning of a term
Nondecodable terms
Words used in medicine whose definition must be memorized without the benefit of word parts.
Diagnosis
Evaluates a patient’s signs, symptoms, and history to determine a condition or disease
Prognosis
A prediction of the probable outcome of a disease or disorder
Sequela
A condition that results from an injury or disease
Acute
Abrupt, severe onset to a disease
Chronic
Develops slowly and lasts for a long time.
Sign
An objective finding of a disease state. (e.g. fever, high blood pressure)
Symptom
A subjective report of a disease.
(Pain, itching)
Asthma
A respiratory disorder characterized by recurring episodes of paroxysmal dyspnea (difficulty breathing).
Cataract
Progressive opacification of the lens
Decodable terms
Terms that can be broken into their Greek and Latin word parts and given a working definition based on the meanings of those word parts.
Eponym
Terms named after a person or place associated with the term.
(e.g., Alzheimer’s disease, Achilles tendon)
Simple Abbreviations
A combination of letters (often, but not always the first significant word parts) and sometimes numbers.
(e.g., IM=intramuscular, C2=second cervical vertebrae)
Acronym
Abbreviations that are also pronounceable.
(e.g., CABG=Coronary Artery Bypass Graft, TURP=Transurethral Resection of the Prostate)
Symbols
Graphic representation of terms.
(➕ stands for present, ➖ stands for absent, ⬆️ stands for increased, ⬇️ stands for decreased, ♀️stands for female, ♂️ stands for male)
Card Method
Four step method to decipher the meanings of healthcare terms.
CHECK for the word parts in a term.
ASSIGN meanings to the word parts.
REVERSE the meanings to the word parts.
DEFINE the term.
arthr/o
joint
gastro/o
Stomach
ophthalm/o
Eye
ot/o
Ear
rhin/o
Nose
hepat/
Liver
-algia
Pain
-tomy
Incision
-scope
Instrument to view
-logy
Study of
-plasty
Surgical repair
cut/o
Skin
-icle
Small
hypo-
Under, deficient
derm/o
Skin
-is
Structure
arteri/o
Artery
-ole
Small
ven/o
Vein
-ule
Small
endo-
Within
cardio/o
Heart
-um
Structure
a-
No, not, without
troph/o
Development
-y
Process of
-ac
Pertaining to
-al
Pertaining to
cervic/o
Neck
-ar
Pertaining to
valvul/o
Valve
-eal
Pertaining to
coron/o
Heart, crown
esophag/o
Esophagus
-ic
Pertaining to
cutane/o
Skin
-ous
Pertaining to
