Medical Terminology NURS 1103 or HLSC 2613

Fundamentals of Medical Terminology

• The fundamental meaning of a medical term is its core or root word.
• Suffixes are attached to the end of a medical term to modify its meaning.
• Prefixes are added to the beginning of a medical term to modify its meaning.
• Vowels are used to ease pronunciation and can be between word roots, known as combining vowels.

Components of Medical Terms

• The root word, also known as the core part of a word, usually derives from Greek or Latin and refers to a body part.
• The combining form is the root word with a vowel attached, used to ease pronunciation.
• Examples: cardi- (heart), muscul- (muscle)

Medical Terminology Course

• The main objective of the Medical Terminology course is to understand medical terms.
• Approximately 95% of medical terms are based on either Greek or Latin.
• One of the course objectives is to learn the language of medicine.
• Learning medical terminology is described as building blocks, where students learn to break down words into their components.

Focus and Approach

• The primary focus of the Medical Terminology course is to understand medical terms.
• Medical terms are based on Greek or Latin in a 95:5 proportion.
• The best way to approach learning medical terminology is by breaking down words into their components.
• The main source of confusion for new students is the complexity of medical terms.

Systems Covered

• Lesson on the Musculoskeletal System covers medical terms related to muscles and bones.
• Lesson on the Cardiovascular System covers medical terms related to the heart and blood vessels.

Word Parts

• Suffixes are added to the end of a medical term to modify its meaning.
• Prefixes are added to the beginning of a medical term to modify its meaning.
• The combining form for 'heart' is cardi-.