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Chapter 1 – " The Structure of Medical
Language"
T his study guide in no
way replaces reading the textbook. Rather, it is intended to serve as a guide to
focus attention on specific areas. While the workbook activities are not
assigned as material to be submitted, the Instructor STRONGLY RECOMMENDS
completing the activities as an invaluable study method.
Just as the English language is made up of smaller words,
medicine as a language is made up of smaller medical terms
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Medical Words |
Word Parts |
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The individual terms used in medicine to describe location,
description, quantity, etc. |
Prefixes, Suffixes, and Roots that when combined make up medical terms |
Combining Forms
- Contains 2 parts:
- Root – contains the medical meaning
- Combining vowel – usually o or i placed at end of
root, allows for additional word parts to join
- Characteristics of a Combining Form
- Every medical word has one
- Gives word it’s medical meaning
- One word may have multiple combining forms
- Prefixes and / or suffixes change it’s meaning
- Usually found in middle of word – BUT comes @ beginning of
word if there is no prefix
- Always ends with a hyphen (-) to show it’s not a complete
word – no hyphen when attached to a suffix
See Figure 1-3, p. 7
Suffixes
- Often indicate:
- Term "pertains to…"
- Disease description
- Procedures or instruments
- Medical specialties or specialists
- Characteristics of a Suffix
- Every medical word has one
- Can be a single letter or a group of letters
- Cannot be the main part of the word
- Always found at end of word attached to the combining form
- Sometimes a word has more than one suffix
- Always begins with a hyphen (-) to show it’s not a complete word
– no hyphen when attached to a combining form
Building Medical Words: Combining Forms and Suffixes
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Laryng/o-
Larynx (voice box)
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+ |
-itis
inflammation |
= |
Laryngitis
Inflammation of the voice box
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Combining Form – indicates body
part |
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Suffix indicates condition - |
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Medical Term |
à
delete the vowel @ the end of the combining form
If the suffix begins with a consonant
à
keep the vowel @ the end of the combining form
See Figure 1-4, Figure 1-5, p. 11
Defining Medical Words: Combining Forms and
Suffixes
-
Whenever possible, break the word apart into it’s
smaller parts: combining form, suffix, and/or prefix
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Define the smaller parts that make up the word
-
Put the definition of the suffix in front of the
definition of the combining form
à word definition
Add connecting words as needed to give clear,
complete definition
See example provided above
Pronouncing Medical Words: Combining Forms
and Suffixes
Review "Pronouncing
Medical Words Exercise", p. 14
Prefixes
- Often indicate:
- Location or direction
- Amount or size
- Time or speed
- Characteristic
- Characteristics of a Prefix
- Optional – not every word has one
- Can be one letter or a group of letters
- Cannot be the main part of a word
- Always found @ beginning of word, before the combining form
- Sometimes a word has more than one prefix
- Always ends with a hyphen (-) to show it’s not a complete
word – no hyphen when attached to a combining form
Building Medical Words: Prefixes,
Combining Forms, and Suffixes
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Hypo-
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+ |
Glyc/o -
Sugar |
+ |
-emia
condition of the blood
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= |
Hypoglycemia Condition of low blood sugar |
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Prefix –
Indicates amount |
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Combining Form -indicates substance |
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Suffix –
Indicates condition |
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Medical Term |
Defining Medical Words: Prefixes, Combining Forms, and
Suffixes
- Define each word part
- Put the definitions in the following order (a) suffix (b)
prefix (c) combining form
- Add connecting words as needed to give clear, complete definition
Review "Pronouncing
Medical Words Exercise", p. 19
Review" Medical Word
Singular and Plural Nouns"
p. 21
For this chapter, you are responsible for the following terms
/ word parts AND their meanings:
Combining Forms
Combining Forms found on top of p.8
Suffixes
Suffixes found on pp. 9 – 10
Prefixes
Prefixes found on pp. 15 – 16
The word parts found on the above pages make up the foundation
of medical language. These are the basics…your future success in this course is
dependent on your mastery of this initial vocabulary.
Abbreviations
Abbreviations are used whenever possible. As you will soon discover, many
terms are long, difficult to pronounce, and harder to spell. Medical
professionals use abbreviations also as a time saving tool for managing
increasingly large patient loads. HOWEVER – medical abbreviations are
standardized. You cannot shorten words as you see fit. You may use
abbreviations as long as they are medically recognized and universally accepted.
During this course, you will be responsible for memorizing common abbreviations
that apply to the specialty being discussed.
Dx
SOAP
HIPAA
Chapter 2 – " The Body in Health"
This study guide in no way replaces reading the textbook.
Rather, it is intended to serve as a guide to focus attention on specific areas.
While the workbook activities are not assigned as material to be submitted, the
Instructor STRONGLY RECOMMENDS completing the activities as an invaluable study
method.
Body Planes
A plane is an imaginary line used to better describe locations within
or on the surface of the body.
- Coronal / Frontal plane – vertical line that divides the body into front and
rear sections
see
Figure 2-2, p. 36
Midsagittal plane – vertical line that divides the body in to equal left
and right halves see Figure 2-6, p. 38
Transverse / Horizontal plane – horizontal line that divides the body into
upper and lower sections
see Figure 2-9, p. 39
Directional Opposites
For every movement the body is capable of making…the opposite movement must
also be possible.
Example:
Make a muscle (like Popeye the Sailorman).
To perform this movement, you had to bend your arm at the elbow. However, you
cannot keep your arm in this position indefinitely (how would you be able to
drive a car, eat a sandwich, or tie your shoes?).
Now straighten out your arm.
To perform this movement, you had to unbend your arm at the elbow.
When using directional opposites, you are describing a relationship of one
body part or position to another.
Posterior – rear
My bellybutton in anterior to my heels.
My backbone is posterior to my breastbone.
- Ventral - front, belly side
Dorsal - rear, back side
Prone - facing downward
Supine - facing upward
When laying on your stomach – you are prone.
When laying on your back – you are supine.
- Medial - toward the middle
Lateral - toward the side
My nose is medial to my ears.
My arms are lateral to my chest.
Inferior - lower portion
My eyes are superior to my thighs.
My feet are inferior to my knees.
- Cephalad - toward the head
Caudad - toward the tailbone
Distal - moving away from the beginning point of the structure
Proximal – moving closer to the beginning point of the structure
My toes are distal to my knee. (The hip is the beginning
point of the leg – the toes are further away from the hip compared to the
knee)
My fingers are distal to my elbow. (The shoulder is the
beginning point of the arm – the fingers are further away from the shoulder
compared to the elbow)
My forearm is proximal to my wrist. (The shoulder is the
beginning point of the arm - the forearm is closer to the shoulder compared
to the wrist)
My hip is proximal to my ankle. (The hip is the beginning
point of the leg – the hip is the beginning and therefore must be closer
compared to the ankle)
- Superficial – on or near the surface
Deep – below the surface
My skin is superficial to my bones.
My brain is deep to my skull.
Internal – inside
The hair on my head is external.
My body organs are internal.
Body Cavities
A cavity is a hollow space within the body that holds internal organs. The
cavities are supported and protected by membranes, muscles, and/or bone.
See Figure 2-14, p. 42
- Cranial cavity
- Contains the brain and cranial nerves
Protected by the skull (cranium)
Spinal cavity
Protected by the backbones (vertebrae)
Thoracic cavity
- Contains the heart, lungs, throat (esophagus), and windpipe (trachea)
Protected by the breastbone (sternum), rib cage, backbones (vertebrae)
Inferior border is the diaphragm
Abdominal cavity
- Contains organs of digestion and elimination
Protected by abdominal muscles, lower portion of posterior rib cage, inferior
portion of backbone (vertebral column)
Pelvic cavity
- Contains organs of reproduction
Protected by pelvis, lowest portion of backbone (vertebral column)
¨¨ NOTE: Because the abdominal
cavity has no distinct separation from the pelvic cavity – the two are often
jointly referred to as the abdominopelvic cavity
¨¨
Quadrants and Regions
Because medicine needs to be as precise as possible when describing
locations, the abdominopelvic cavity is further subdivided into quadrants and
regions.
- Quadrants
- 4 subregions of the anterior area of the abdomen
To locate:
- draw a vertical line from the top of your abdomen, directly through your
bellybutton, to the bottom of your abdomen (this forms the left and right sides)
draw a horizontal line from the left side of your abdomen, directly through
your bellybutton, to the right side of your abdomen (this forms the upper and
lower portions)
see Figure 2-15, p. 44
Used to better assess specific organ(s) responsible for dysfunction
Example:
Walter complains that his tummy hurts. His mommy rubs it for
him, asks does he need to use the restroom (he says no), makes him some chicken
soup, and sends him to bed to lie down.
After the pain worsened significantly through the night,
Walter’s mom takes him to the doctor’s office first thing in the morning. She
tells the nurse that Walter’s stomach has been hurting. The nurse, understanding
how many organs are located within the abdomen, asks Walter to point to where
his tummy is bothering him. Walter points to the lower right portion of this
abdomen.
Using her knowledge of medical anatomy, the nurse recognizes
that the appendix is located in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen (RUQ)
and pain in this area may signal a medical emergency – if the appendix ruptures,
bacteria will invade the cavity and bloodstream placing a patient is at serious
risk for infection, which if not caught early and left untreated will cause
death.
Walter is taken to the radiology department for an x-ray. The
films show that Walter’s appendix is extremely enlarged and likely to burst at
any moment. He is rushed to the operating room for surgery and Walter’s appendix
is removed.
- Regions
- 9 subregions of the abdominopelvic cavity
To locate:
- draw two vertical lines from the top of the abdominopelvic cavity to the
bottom
draw two horizontal lines from the left side of the abdomen to the right side
of the abdomen
the bellybutton should be in the center of the middle square
see Figure 2-16, p. 44
Used to provide more accurate description of location within
the cavity
You are not responsible for the Body Systems
Approach – we will be studying the individual body systems
throughout the course of this class. I encourage you to review
pp. 45 – 51 as they are a preview of future class material.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary is an essential element of understanding Medical
Terminology. Not all words can be broken apart and defined by
their smaller word parts.
You will be responsible only for the vocabulary terms
discussed and listed in your study guides. However, you should
be able to recognize and define vocabulary words that include a
previously studied prefix or suffix. If that term contains a
combining form, you are not responsible for knowing that word
part – but the more you know, the easier medical terminology
will be!
Some chapters will have long vocabulary lists, others will
have shorter lists. You should be sure to study the Vocabulary
Review sections located in each chapter.
Here you will find the vocabulary term, it’s combining form and
definition, as well as a description.
In addition to studying word structure and definition, in
this course we also emphasize spelling. Incorrectly spelling a
term may change the entire meaning of the term.
Example:
uvula – the small piece of tissue that hangs in the rear
portion of the throat
vulva – the female external genitalia
In the above example, the terms look similar…but are two VERY
different body parts!
The following vocabulary terms represent the
basic terminology used in medicine. The terms in this chapter
are essential to your later success with understanding and
comfortably using medical terminology to describe body systems,
organs, and movements associated with each.
Anatomical position
Anatomy
Health
Macroscopic
Mediastinum
Microscope
Physiology
Viscera
Body in Disease
You are responsible for all of the vocabulary
terms found on pp. 62 – 65
Healthcare Professionals and Healthcare Settings
doctor
surgeon
nurse
technician
therapist
inpatient
ancillary
outpatient
ambulatory
rehabilitation
hospice
palliative
Suffixes
-al
-ar
-ary
-atic
-iatry
-ic
-ics
-ior
-logy
-ous
-eon
-ation
-ery
-gen
-ician
-ion
-ious
-ist
-ive
-ory
Prefixes
endo-
epi-
hypo-
mid-
re-
a-
de-
dia-
pro-
re-
Abbreviations
Dx
Hx
PE
RN
Sx
Tx
PCP
Discussion Questions
The discussion board is intended to simulate in-class student / Instructor
interaction. Each week, the discussion board has two components.
Case Study: based on body system being studied, students are to
respond to one Instructor-posted question. The questions will
be updated roughly every three – four student postings to further
understanding. Though only one posting is required, students are
encouraged to participate in the discussion board throughout the
week to advance learning. (20 points)
- Terminology Train: Instructor will begin week by posting one term from the
weekly lesson. The first student to visit the discussion board is to define that
term. That student is then to post another term. The next student to visit the
discussion board is to define that term, post another….and so on. No terms
may be repeated. (5 points)
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Example:
Instructor posts: cardiomyopathy
Student 1 posts: disease of the heart
muscle
Student 1 posts: nosocomial infection
Student 2 posts: hospital acquired
illness
Student 2 posts: malignant
Etc…….until everyone has posted
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Students are to make both required
discussion board postings no later than 11:59 pm on the date indicated on the
homepage.
NO LATE DISCUSSION BOARD POSTINGS WILL BE ACCEPTED WITHOUT
INSTRUCTOR PRIOR APPROVAL.
Don't forget to take the exam by clicking the exam
button below.
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