Medical Symbols and Terminology Quiz

Medical Symbols and Terms

• Right: ®, Not/None/Null: ∅
• Left: Ⓛ, Change: △
• Before: ā (from "ante"), Primary: 1°
• After: p̄ (from "post"), Secondary: 2°
• With: c̅ (from Spanish "con"), Treatment/Prescription: ℞
• Without: s̅ (from Spanish "sin"), Greater than: >
• Every: q, Less than: <

Gender Symbols

• Male: ♂, Positive: +⨁
• Female: ♀, Negative: - ⊖
• Increase: ↑, Decrease: ↓
• Moving toward: →, Standing: (Position), Sitting: (Position), Lying down: (Position)

Common Medical Abbreviations

• Pt or pt: Patient
• c/o: “Complains of” or “complaints of”; used in patient documentation

Medical Terminology Building Blocks

• Prefixes:

  • a-/an-: Not, without
  • pre-: Before
  • post-: After
  • hypo-: Under, below
  • hyper-: Over
  • sub-: Under, below
  • epi-: Above
  • inter-: Between, among
  • intra-: Within, inside
  • micro-: Small
  • macro-: Large
  • dys-: Bad, painful, difficult

• Roots:

  • neur/o: Nerve, nervous system
  • ophthalm/o: Eye, vision
  • ot/o: Ear, hearing
  • dermat/o: Skin
  • cardi/o: Heart
  • pulmon/o: Lung
  • hepat/o: Liver
  • nephr/o: Kidney
  • gastr/o: Stomach
  • oste/o: Bone
  • my/o: Muscle, muscle tumor
  • arthr/o: Joint

• Suffixes:

  • -ac, -ic, -al, -ous, -tic: Related to
  • -ectomy: Excision, removal
  • -itis: Inflammation of
  • -logist: Specialist in study of
  • -logy: Study of
  • -oma: Tumor mass
  • -osis: Abnormal condition
  • -pathy: Disease condition
  • -scope: Instrument to observe
  • -scopy: Visual examination
  • -gram: To record
  • -graphy: Process of recording

Major Functions of the Skeletal System

• Protection: Ribs protect the heart and vital organs.
• Storage: Bones hold minerals and fat.
• Support: Provides body shape and structure.
• Blood cell formation: Bone marrow produces blood cells.

Skeleton Overview

• Axial Skeleton:
  • Contains 80 bones.
  • Comprises skull, thoracic cage (ribs, sternum), and vertebral column.
• Appendicular Skeleton:
  • Contains 126 bones.
  • Includes shoulder girdle, upper extremities, pelvic girdle, and lower extremities.

Skeletal System Terminology

• Prefixes:

  • a-/an-: Without
  • anti-: Against
  • inter-: Between
  • intra-: Within
  • meta-: Beyond
  • non-: Not
  • peri-: Surrounding, around
  • sub-: Under
  • supra-: Above
  • syn-: With, together

• Roots:

  • acr/o: Extremities
  • ankyl/o: Crooked, stiff, bent
  • arthr/o: Joint
  • brachi/o: Arm
  • burs/o: Bursa (joint fluid sac)
  • cervic/o: Neck
  • chondro/o: Cartilage
  • cost/o: Ribs
  • crani/o: Skull
  • kyph/o: Bent, hump
  • lumb/o: Lower back
  • myel/o: Spinal cord, bone marrow
  • ortho/o: Straight
  • ped/o: Child, foot

• Suffixes:

  • -al, -ic: Pertaining to
  • -algia: Pain
  • -itis: Inflammation
  • -oma: Tumor
  • -plasty: Surgical repair
  • -rrhea: Discharge, flow

Cranial Bones Functions

• Protect from excessive sunlight and infections.
• Receive stimuli from the environment.
• Excrete waste.
• Store blood and regulate body temperature.
• Synthesize vitamin D.

Integumentary System Components

• Skin, hair, nails, sweat glands, oil glands.

Types of Cancerous Skin Lesions

• First-degree: Superficial, affects only the epidermis, erythematous, dry, painful, no blisters.
• Second-degree: Involves epidermis and part of dermis, painful, blisters present.
• Third-degree: Destroys epidermis and dermis, may involve subcutaneous tissue; hyperesthesia or anesthesia due to nerve damage.
• Fourth-degree: Total destruction extending into deeper structures (muscle, bone); often fatal.

Diseases and Conditions Relevant to the Skin

• Acne: Inflammatory skin disease affecting sebaceous glands.
• Albinism: Absence of skin, hair, and eye pigment.
• Alopecia: Hair loss.
• Cyanosis: Bluish skin discoloration.
• Eczema: Inflammatory skin disease characterized by redness and scabs.
• Psoriasis: Chronic skin condition with red lesions and silvery scales.
• Vitiligo: Loss of skin pigmentation, resulting in milky-white patches.

Test your knowledge of medical symbols, gender symbols, and common abbreviations. This quiz also covers essential prefixes and roots that form the building blocks of medical terminology. Perfect for students and professionals in the medical field!