Medical Terminology Lecture 4: Suffixes

Lecture 4: Medical Terminology (MD 303)

• Lecture presented by Dr./ Heba Mahmoud Mansour, lecturer of Pharmacology & Toxicology
• Focuses on medical suffixes related to diseases and symptoms

Suffixes Pertaining to Diseases and Symptoms (Page 2, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12)

• -algesia: Sensation of pain; Example: Analgesia (anl-jezeā); Definition: Loss of sensation of pain
• -dilation: Expansion or widening; Example: Vasodilation (vasō-di-la-tion); Definition: Dilatation of blood vessels, usually by nerve action
• -edema: Swelling, accumulation of fluids; Example: Cephaledema (sefa-li-dīma); Definition: Edema of the head
• -gen: Producing or beginning; Example: Carcinogen (car-sīn-ō-jen); Definition: Any substance that causes cancer
• -gram: Record, picture; Example: Encephalogram (en-sef-ā-lo-gram); Definition: X-ray picture of the brain
• -itis: Inflammation; Example: Gastritis (gas-tri-tis); Definition: Inflammation of the stomach
• -lysis: Separation, loosing, dissolving; Example: Hemolysis (hi-mol-ū-sis); Definition: The breaking down of red blood cells, with hemoglobin liberation
• -megaly: Enlargement; Example: Hepatomegaly (heptō-mega-ly); Definition: Enlargement of the liver
• -meter: Instrument for measuring; Example: Thermometer (ther-mo-me-ter); Definition: An instrument for measuring temperature
• -necrosis: Death of tissue; Example: Hepatonecrosis (hepato-nekrosīs); Definition: Necrosis of liver tissue
• -plegia: Paralysis; Example: Hemiplegia (hemē-ple-jeā); Definition: Paralysis of one side of the body
• -phobia: Fear; Example: Acrophobia (akrō-fō-bīā); Definition: A pathological fear of heights
• -rrhage: Excessive flow; Example: Hemorrhage (hem-ō-ri-j); Definition: A profuse discharge of blood, especially from a ruptured blood vessel
• -rrhea: Discharge, flow; Example: Menorrhea (meno-re-ā); Definition: Normal menstruation
• -scopy: Examination view; Example: Otoscopy (oto-sko-pe); Definition: An instrument for examining the external canal of the ear
• -spasm: Involuntary contraction or twitching of a muscle; Example: Blepharospasm (blef-ā-ro-spazm); Definition: Spasm of the eyelids
• -tension: Pressure; Example: Hypertension (hay-per-ten-shuhn); Definition: Elevation of blood pressure, especially diastolic
• -therapy: Treatment; Example: Chemotherapy (kē-mo-ther-pē); Definition: Treatment of disease by chemicals that selectively destroy cancerous tissue
• -algia: Pain; Example: Arthralgia; Definition: Joint pain
• -dynia: Pain; Example: Gastrodynia; Definition: Stomach pain
• -plasty: Surgical repair; Example: Myplasty; Definition: Surgical repair of a muscle

Medical Abbreviations (Pages 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 23, 25, 26, 28)

• Abbreviations for frequencies (page 15):
• h: Hour
• q: Every
• qd: Once a day
• qod: Every other day
• q-h: Every – hours
• bid: Twice a day
• tid: Three times a day
• qid: Four times a day
• hs: At bedtime
• ac: Before meals
• pc: After meals
• prn: When needed
• ad lib: As desired
• stat: Immediately
• Abbreviations for means of administration (page 17, 20):
• PO: By mouth
• IV: Intravenously
• IM: Intramuscularly
• Subcu, subq: Subcutaneously
• Subling: Sublingually
• R: Rectally
• D5W: 5% glucose in distilled water (IV)
• Caps.: Capsules
• supp: Suppository
• Abbreviations for miscellaneous terms (pages 22, 23, 25, 26, 28):
• numerous abbreviations related to various medical conditions (i.e. ANS, Aq, Av, BP, BS, BT, c.b.c. etc) are listed and defined

Additional Images (pages 3, 5, 9, 19, 21, 27, 24)

• Images illustrating variations in blood vessel size (vasoconstriction and vasodilation), pitting edema, liver enlargement due to hepatomegaly, types of injections, samples of medications, and the ESR test.

This quiz covers medical terminology related to suffixes associated with diseases and symptoms, as presented in Lecture 4 of MD 303. Test your knowledge of key suffixes and their meanings, essential for understanding medical language and pharmacology.