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Healthcare Language
Medical terminology is a language for accurately describing the
human body and associatedcomponents, conditions, processes and
process in a science-based manner. Some examples are:R.I.C.E.,
trapezius, and latissimus dorsi. It is to be used in the medical
and nursing fields. his
systematic approach to !ord building and term comprehension is
based on the concept of: "#$!ord roots , "%$ prefixes , and
"&$suffixes . he ' word is a term deri(ed from a source
languagesuch as )ree* or +atin and usually describes a body part.
he prefix can be added in front of theterm to modify the !ord root
by gi(ing additional information about the location of an organ,
thenumber of parts, or time in(ol(ed. Suffixes are attached to the
end of a !ord root to add meaningsuch as condition, disease
process, or procedure.
In the process of creating medical terminology, certain rules of
language apply. hese rules are part of language mechanics called
linguistics . So, !hen a term is de(eloped, some logical process is
applied. he !ord root is de(eloped to include a (o!el sound
follo!ing the term toadd a smoothing action to the sound of the
!ord !hen applying a suffix. he result is the
formation of a ne! term !ith a (o!el attached "!ord root (o!el$
called a combining form . InEnglish, the most common (o!el used in
the formation of the combining form is the letter -o- ,added to the
!ord root.
Prefixes do not normally re uire further modification to be
added to a !ord root because the prefix normally ends in a (o!el or
(o!el sound, although in some cases they may assimilateslightly and
an in- may change to im- or syn- to sym-.
Suffixes are categorized as either "#$ needing the combining
form, or "%$ not needing thecombining form since they start !ith a
(o!el.
ecoding the medical term is an important process, "See:
/orphology $. 0nce experience isgained in the process of forming
and decoding medical terminology, the process begins to ma*esense
and becomes easier. 0ne approach in(ol(es brea*ing do!n the !ord by
e(aluating themeaning of the suffix first, then prefix, and finally
the !ord root. his !ill generally produce agood result for the
experienced health care professional. 1hen in doubt, the result
should be(erified by a medical terminology dictionary. he process
of learning a ne! language, such asmedical terminology, is a
challenging, yet attainable goal as the basic rules2once learned2
ma*e the process easier. "See 3pplied +inguistics $
0ne uic* online reference is a dictionary search engine. he
allo!s one to enter a medical terminto a dialogue box and initiate
a search. here are also numerous online medical dictionaries to
select from. 0nce a term is located, the response !ill be
subdi(ided into se(eral basic formats,including )eneral usage,
/edicine, +a!, 4usiness, and others.
he use of a medical dictionary or Internet search engine is most
helpful in learning the exactmeaning of a medical term. 5o!e(er, if
the basic concepts of !ord building are understood,many !ords are
understandable to the student of medical terminology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_bodyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_roothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefixeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffixeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffixeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguisticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morphology_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applied_Linguisticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_dictionaryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_bodyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_roothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefixeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffixeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguisticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morphology_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applied_Linguisticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_dictionaryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language
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In forming or understanding a !ord root, one needs a basic
comprehension of the term and thesource language. he study of the
origin of !ords is called etymology . 6or example, if a !ord!as to
be formed to indicate a condition of *idneys, there are t!o primary
roots 7 one from)ree* "89 ;abo(e>$, and the !ordroot for *idney,
and the entire !ord means >situated abo(e the *idneys>. he
!ord>nephrologist > combines the root !ord for *idney to the
suffix -ologist !ith the resultantmeaning of >one !ho studies
the *idneys>.
In medical terminology, the word root is not usually capable of
standing alone as a complete!ord !ithin a sentence. his is
different than most !ord roots in modern standard English.
hemedical !ord root is ta*en from a different source language, so
it !ill remain meaningless as astand-alone term in an English
sentence. 3 suffix or prefix must be added to ma*e a usable
medical term. 6or example the term for >concerning the
heart> is >cardiacus>, from the )ree*karda . If a person
is suffering from a heart related illness, the statement, > he
patient suffered akarda e(ent,> !ould not ma*e sense. 5o!e(er,
!ith the addition of a suffix -ac , the statement!ould be modified
to read, > he patient suffered a cardiac e(ent> !hich is an
acceptable use ofmedical terminology. he process is different in
standard English because the !ord roots arecapable of standing
alone in a sentence. 6or example, the !ord eye is a !ord root in
English thatcan be used !ithout modification in a sentence.
3n additional challenge to the student of medical terminology is
that the formation of the pluralof a !ord must be done using the
rules of forming the proper plural form as used in the
sourcelanguage. his is more difficult than in English, !here adding
-s or -es is the rule. )ree* and
+atin each ha(e differing rules to be applied !hen forming the
plural form of the !ord root.0ften such details can be found using
a medical dictionary .
here is also another rule of medical terminology to be
recognized by the student. 1hen morethan one body part is used in
the formation of a medical term, the indi(idual !ord roots are
?oined together by using the combining form using the letter -o-
to indicate the ?oining togetherof (arious body parts. 6or example
if there is an inflammation of the stomach and intestines,
this!ould be !ritten as gastro- and enter- plus -itis ,
gastroenteritis . In this example, the -o- signifiesthe ?oining
together of t!o body parts.
Medical terminology
/edical erminology often uses !ords created using prefixes and
suffixes in +atin and 3ncient )ree* . In medicine , their meanings,
and their etymology , are informed by the language of
origin.@refixes and suffixes, primarily in )ree*2but also in +atin,
ha(e a dropable -o- . /edical rootsgenerally go together according
to language: )ree* prefixes go !ith )ree* suffixes and
+atin@refixes !ith +atin Suffixes. 3lthough it is technically
considered acceptable to create hybrid!ords, it is strongly
preferred not to mix different lingual roots. Examples of
!ell-acceptedmedical !ords that do mix lingual roots are
neonatology and uadriplegia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renal_failurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephrologisthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_dictionaryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastroenteritishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefix_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffix_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffix_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greekhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greekhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greekhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renal_failurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephrologisthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_dictionaryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastroenteritishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefix_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffix_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greekhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greekhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymology
