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Medical
Terminology
2nd Edition

Medical
Terminology
2nd Edition

by Beverley Henderson, CMT-R, HRT
and Jennifer Dorsey

Medical Terminology For Dummies® 2nd Edition
,
Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc
...
wiley
...
, Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Contents at a Glance
Introduction
...
5
Chapter 1: Scrubbing In to Master Medical Terminology
...
13
Chapter 3: Introducing the Big Three: Prefixes, Roots, and Suffixes
...
31
Chapter 5: Say What? Pronunciation and Usage
...
55
Chapter 6: As It Was in the Beginning: Prefixes
...
69
Chapter 8: Hey, I Know You: Word Recognition
...
85
Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body
...
109

Part III: In Terms of Anatomy
...
121
Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System
...
153
Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems
...
185
Chapter 16: The Hear   of the Mat   er: The Cardiovascular and
t
t
Lymphatic Systems
...
211
Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System
...
245
Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Ner  ous System
...
275
Chapter 21: When You Gotta Go: The Urinary System
...
291
Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System
...
325
Chapter 24: Ten Essential Medical Terminology References
...
331
Chapter 26: Ten Sets of Terminology Tongue-Twisting Diseases
...
341
Index
...
1
About This Book
...
2
Icons Used in This Book
...
4
Where to Go from Here
...
5
Chapter 1: Scrubbing In to Master Medical Terminology
...
7
Making Terminology Work for You
...
9
In Terms of Anatomy
...
10
Down-Under Details
...
12

Chapter 2: Medical Terminology: The How and Why
...
13
Medical Terminology in the Real World
...
15
Writing it down
...
16
It’s Greek and Latin to Me
...
17

Chapter 3: Introducing the Big Three: Prefixes, Roots, and Suffixes
...
20
Exterior root words
...
23
Prefix as Precursor
...
28
Suffixes: Final Thoughts
...
31
Acronyms
...
34
Homonyms
...
37
Medical rules for forming plurals
...
39
Welcome to the Peanut Gallery: More Exceptions to the Plural Rules
...
45
Hooked on Phonics
...
46
The sound of silence
...
47
Pronouncing Common Suffixes and Endings
...
49
Putting It All Together
...
51
Suffering Suffixes
...
55
Chapter 6: As It Was in the Beginning: Prefixes
...
57
A–E prefixes
...
59
K–O prefixes
...
60
Matching Prefixes to Situations
...
61
In the doctor’s office and hospital
...
63
Retro Root Rewind A–M
...
66

Chapter 7: So It Shall Be in the End: Suffixes
...
69
-itis
...
70
-pathy
...
70
Matching Suffixes to Situations
...
73
In the doctor’s office and hospital
...
75
The Inside Story: Terms for Your Interior
...
81
Pathological Conditions
...
85
Finding Parts of Words
...
86
Defining the prefix
...
87
Identifying the combining vowel
...
88
Going Deeper into Suffixes
...
91

Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body
...
95
Cells
...
97
Organs and Systems
...
98
Directional Terms and Anatomical Planes
...
102

Chapter 11: All Systems Go: When Systems Combine
...
109
The musculoskeletal system
...
110
The sensory system
...
111
The cardiovascular and lymphatic systems
...
112
The gastrointestinal system
...
114
The nervous system
...
116

Part III: In Terms of Anatomy
...
121
How the Skeletal System Works
...
123
Axial skeleton
...
126
Joints
...
128
More Anatomical Terms
...
132
Finding the Culprit: Skeletal Diseases and Pathology
...
135
Paging Dr
...
135

Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System
...
139
Classes of muscles
...
141
Muscles and tendons
...
142
Muscular Roots and Suffixes
...
148
Common Muscular Conditions
...
150
Testing, Testing: Muscular Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Muscular Surgeries and Procedures
...
152

Chapter 14: Skin Deep: Skin, Glands, Nails, and Hair
...
153
Epidermis
...
155
Subcutaneous layer
...
156
Hair and Nails
...
158
Common Integumentary Conditions
...
161
Testing, Testing: Integumentary Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Integumentary Surgeries and Procedures
...
165

Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems
...
167
Inner eye
...
170
The Ear
...
171
Middle ear
...
172

Table of Contents
The Nose
...
173
The Touch Receptor
...
174
It’s All Related: More Anatomical Terms
...
179
Finding the Culprit: Sensory Diseases and Pathology
...
181
Paging Dr
...
182
Terminology RX: Sensory Pharmacology
...
185
Chapter 16: The Hear  t of the Mat  ter: The Cardiovascular
and Lymphatic Systems
...
187
The heart
...
190
Blood
...
193
Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Root Words
...
199
Finding the Culprit: Cardiovascular and Lymphatic
Diseases and Pathology
...
204
Paging Dr
...
206
Terminology Rx: Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Pharmacology
...
211
How the Respiratory System Works
...
212
Pharynx and larynx
...
213
Bronchi
...
214
Respiratory Root Words
...
218
Common Respiratory Conditions
...
221
Testing, Testing: Respiratory Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Respiratory Surgeries and Procedures
...
226

xi

xii

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System
...
228
Mouth and pharynx
...
230
Stomach
...
231
Pancreas
...
231
Intestines
...
233
Common Gastrointestinal Conditions
...
239
Testing, Testing: Gastrointestinal Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Gastrointestinal Surgeries and Procedures
...
244

Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System
...
245
Hormones
...
247
Thyroid
...
249
Adrenals
...
250
Endocrine Root Words
...
253
Common Endocrine Conditions
...
257
Testing, Testing: Endocrine Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Endocrine Surgeries and Procedures
...
260

Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Ner vous System
...
261
The Central Nervous System
...
263
Spinal cord
...
265
Nervous Root Words
...
267
Common Nervous Conditions
...
270
Testing, Testing: Nervous Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Nervous Surgeries and Procedures
...
273

Table of Contents

Part V: Name That Plumbing
...
277
How the Urinary System Works
...
278
Ureters
...
280
Urethra
...
281
Common Urinary Conditions
...
284
Testing, Testing: Urinary Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Urinary Surgeries and Procedures
...
289

Chapter 22: Check the Plumbing: The Male Reproductive System
...
291
Testes
...
293
Urethra
...
294
Penis
...
294
Pathological Male Reproductive Conditions
...
297
Testing, Testing: Male Reproductive Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
...
Terminology: Male Reproductive Surgeries
and Procedures
...
301
Say What? Male Terminology Tongue Twisters
...
305
How the Female Reproductive System Works
...
307
Fallopian tubes
...
308
Vagina
...
310
It’s All Related: More Female Reprodutive Anatomaical Terms
...
316
Finding the Culprit: Female Reproductive Diseases and Pathology
...
319
Paging Dr
...
320
Terminology RX: Female Reproductive Pharmacology
...
325
Chapter 24: Ten Essential Medical Terminology References
...
com
...
com
...
com
...
328
Mosby’s Medical Dictionary
...
328
Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary
...
329
Medicalmnemonics
...
329
Medical Terminology Systems Quick Study Guide
...
331
Cranial Nerves
...
332
The Size of a Thyroid
...
332
Muscles of the Rotator Cuff
...
333
Face Nerves
...
333
Sperm Path through Male Reproductive Tract
...
334
Cranial Bones
...
335
Skeletal
...
336
Integumentary
...
336
Cardiovascular and Lymphatic
...
337
Gastrointestinal
...
338
Nervous
...
338

Appendix: Prefixes and Suffixes
...
345

Introduction

W

elcome to Medical Terminology For Dummies! Consider this your personal, private course in the study of the medical terms used everyday
in doctor’s offices, hospitals, clinics, billing and insurance companies, labs,
and even pharmacies
...

You’ll find as you read this book that learning medical terms is a two-part proposition
...
Don’t worry,
though — there will be no quiz
...
Once you get to know more about prefixes,
suffixes, and root words, you can do darn near anything with the terminology
...

Mastering medical terminology involves more than just memorizing
...


About This Book
Getting to know the world of medical terminology can get a bit repetitive
at times
...
You start by getting the backstory of terminology — the history and the players involved with bringing this “language”
to the masses
...
Finally, you
take a gander at all the different body systems and the words associated with
them
...

There’s a lot to learn about medical terminology, we admit, but we’ll be right
there with you for the whole wild, crazy ride
...
Read out of order, skip what you don’t need
...


2

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Keep in mind that this is not a giant textbook of terms, nor is it a dictionary
...
This is a friendly take on the topic, and our main
goal is to show you the basics of how these words are made so that you can
go out in the big, bad world and master the creation and use of medical terms
on your own terms
...

We do rely on some conventions within this book that you may not see elsewhere in an attempt to keep the tone fun and conversational
...
You will notice we also make extensive use of lists in this book
...
Be honest: Wouldn’t you rather be able to study these terms in
organized, easy-to-find lists and tables rather than picking through long, boring
paragraphs trying to find the words you need to learn? We thought so
...
Each system chapter tells
you a bit about how that particular body system works, to give you some
context for its words
...

That means you might see words like pee and poo from time to time
...

New terms are in italics to make them easier to spot
...
Don’t be
alarmed by those little pictures you see peppering the pages of this book
...
We want you to stop
and look at these great kernels of knowledge as you go through the book
...




✓ A medical professional looking to brush up on terms if you’re a bit out of
practice or just want to know more about how these terms are made
...


Introduction
No matter what possessed you to pick up this book, we hope it gives you the
terminology boost you need for your particular circumstances
...

Moreover, there are names for all kinds of associated terms relating to functions, conditions, diseases, pathology, and even pharmacology
...
But you are eager, right? And no amount of 50-cent words
frighten you away from your goal: to become a medical terminology Zen
master
...


Icons Used in This Book
This book makes extensive use of icons — those little pictures that denote an
important tidbit of information
...




Highlights passages that are good to keep in mind when mastering medical
terminology
...




This icon indicates you are about to read an interesting tidbit about the Greek
heritage behind the terms you are learning
...




This icon indicates something cool and perhaps a little offbeat from the discussion at hand
...
No
matter how hard you study for your medical terminology exams, you’ll likely
come across a few questions where you don’t have a clue
...
dummies
...

This book also includes a handful of free online articles
...
dummies
...


Where to Go from Here
By all means, if you’re feeling spunky you can jump right into this book at any
point and start working on your terminology savvy
...
But by all means, feel free to
hunt and peck the sections that are most useful to you
...
Be brave
...
Once you get the hang of how these words are made, you’ll have
no problem committing them to memory and to your daily life
...
dummies
...


In this part 
...
” But
once you get deep into the world of medical terms, you will find that it is
a whole new way of speaking
...
You will meet some of the pioneers of the medical
world
...


The Tale behind the Terms
Medical terminology is made up of the terms that describe human anatomy
and physiology (body organs, systems, and their functions), body locations,
diseases, clinical, diagnostic imaging, and laboratory testing, together with
clinical procedures, surgeries, and diagnoses
...
But
when your doc communicates that information to, say, a surgeon, it’s crucial
to be more specific
...
A medical term usually describes in one word
a disease or condition that, under normal circumstances, would take several
words to describe
...
” Now that saves you plenty of breath for
more important things, like singing an aria or rooting for the Colts
...
The Greeks were the founders of modern medicine, but Latin is the
basic source of medical terms
...
Building on guidance from the Greek and Latin
origins, medical terms began to be professionalized in the mid-1800s
...


Making Terminology Work for You
Thankfully, there are ways to wade through the quagmire of medical terms
and figure out how to pronounce and use them like a champ
...
Or, to put it in a fancy-schmancy way, you should
use etymology
...
You can use etymology to decipher words with Latin and
Greek origins, eponyms (words named after people), and acronyms (modern
language terms that stand for longer phrases)
...
There are three you need to
know: roots/combining forms, prefixes, and suffixes
...
They are the basic form
around which the final word is formed
...
Prefixes
appear at the beginning of a word and tell the how, why, where, when, how
much, how many, position, direction, time, or status
...
While the
prefix gives you a clue into what to expect in a word’s meaning, the suffix tells
you what is happening with a specific body part or system
...

The breaking down of words that you will learn in this book also helps you
with pronunciation
...
One thing
that helps in both the standard English and medical worlds, though, is to learn
how to pronounce phonetically, by breaking up the word into smaller parts
...
Once you can do that, you can move on to building your word vocabulary
...
The good news is that you probably already know a lot of medical terms
and you can use those to build up the rest of your newfound vocabulary
...
You can make lists of word parts,
list words by similar sound, map words, or memorize terms by body system
...
Do whatever works for you, even if it’s singing
terms to the tune of “Sunrise, Sunset” in the shower
...


In Terms of Anatomy
For our purposes in the land of medical terms, we can compare anatomy to
the infrastructure of a building
...
Your body’s anatomy is no different, which is why you
are going to read about these particular terms first
...

First on our anatomy checklist is the skeletal system
...
This system, along with its joints,
works together with the muscles to give you the support and movement you
need every day
...

Working together with the skeleton is the muscular system, in which several
different major muscle groups work together
...

Covering all this infrastructure is the integumentary system
...
They are the things people see when they look at you
...

Healthy skin, along with accessory organs glands, hair, and nails, are the hallmarks of healthy insides, so care for them accordingly
...
The windows,
amenities, sound system, and dining facility all bring aesthetic delight to the
building’s inhabitants, and your senses work in a similar fashion
...
And who knows? Perhaps there’s a word out there that hasn’t been
created yet — until you came along
...
Physiology deals with the remaining
body systems that help your fabulous body do its day-to-day work
...
More specifically, the cardiovascular system
...
It has supporting players, namely your
blood cells and vessels
...

Then there is the separate but complementary lymphatic system that works
to flush your body of impurities
...

Lymph vessels are arranged in a similar pattern as the blood vessels
...
You may not consciously think about it every day, but
breathing makes it all possible
...
External respiration is the repetitive, unconscious
exchange of air between the lungs and the external environment
...

Your good buddy the gastrointestinal system helps turn those tasty meals
and treats into usable energy for your body
...
 well, you know
...
It does this by sending chemical messengers called hormones throughout the body via the bloodstream
...
Slowly released hormones control
organs from a distance
...
They are said to be ductless, because they have no duct system to
transport their secretions
...
One can stimulate growth, another matures sex organs, and yet another controls metabolism
...

Even more complicated (are we having fun yet?) is the nervous system
...
Messages from the brain are relayed via the spinal cord through
nerve fibers that provide connections for incoming and outgoing data
...
This system controls our voluntary activities as well
as involuntary activities
...
We respond to pain, danger, temperature,
and touch
...
These functions are only a small part of what the nervous system controls
...
The peripheral nervous system (PNS) is
composed of cranial nerves (that extend from the brain) and spinal nerves
(that extend from the spinal cord)
...


Down-Under Details
Speaking of things you don’t usually think about, the urinary system is made
up of the kidneys (two), ureters (also two), bladder, and urethra
...

Urea is formed in the liver from ammonia
...
The kidneys
produce the urine that travels through each ureter into the bladder to be
excreted via the urethra
...
On second thought, maybe not
...
In the process, food and oxygen are not destroyed, but
small particles making up the food and oxygen are rearranged in a new combination, and the results are waste products
...


11

12

Part I: Living for Linguistics
Think about how you were made
...
Your mom and dad made you (see Sex For Dummies if you don’t get
our drift here) using their reproductive systems
...
The reproductive organs, or gonads, are the
testes
...
The ducts include the epididymides (epididymis-singular) vas
deferens, ejaculatory ducts, and the urethra
...
The supporting
structures include the penis, scrotum, and spermatic cords
...
The gonads (ovaries in the female),
together with the internal accessory organs consisting of the fallopian (uterine) tubes, uterus, vagina, external genitalia, and breasts (mammary glands)
make up the reproductive system in the female
...

This is just a quick glance at the kinds of stuff you’re going to learn about
your body
...


The Ultimate Resource: You
A listing of well-known term references, recall devices, and word-building
activities will help you apply terminology to your own personal real-world
situation
...

Of course, there are thousands of online and print resources, most of which
are decent, if not downright reputable
...

As you go on this journey, remember that ultimately you are your own best
source of tips and tricks
...
Perhaps you
do best when you can visualize the term with the appropriate body system
...
” No matter how you choose to learn and recall these terms, do what
is most comfortable and useful for you
...
Now,
hoist the sail!

Chapter 2

Medical Terminology:
The How and Why
In This Chapter
▶ Getting an understanding of what medical terminology is
▶ Finding out how medical terms are used in the real world
▶ Tracking the evolution of terminology
▶ Exploring Greek and Latin roots

R

epeat after us: Context is a good thing
...
Mmmmm,
context
...
This is particularly true
with medical terminology because so much of the theory and history behind
this topic shows up in the actual words and terms you will use every day
...
It’s a whole lot more than
just medical words and phrases
...
Cobbled
together, these parts make up the meaning of the word
...



A medical term usually describes in one word a disease or condition that,
under normal circumstances, would take several words to describe
...
In fact, it operates exactly
like a foreign language if you have never
encountered it before
...
Each prefix, root, and suffix has
its own meaning, so it’s your job to remember
them and put the three meanings together into
one greater word meaning
...


✓ Prefix: Appears at the beginning of a word
and tells the how, why, where, when, how
much, how many, position, direction, time,
or status
...
For example, if we use tonsillitis and
appendectomy, we see that the suffix -itis always
means ”inflammation,” no matter what root word
precedes it
...
” So when switching suffixes, appendicitis means “inflammation of
the appendix,” and tonsillectomy means “surgical removal of the tonsils
...

✓ Suffix: Appears at the end of a word and
indicates a procedure, condition, or disease
...
Tonsillitis
is a one-word medical term to describe “inflammation of the tonsils,” and
appendectomy is a one-word medical term to describe “surgical removal
of the appendix
...
For example, a firefighter has to relay information to paramedics, such as the condition of a burn victim being placed in an ambulance
...
Or closer to home, think about trying to understand when a
doctor tells you that your child needs surgery, or why an aging parent needs to
be placed in a long-term care facility
...
For example, saying someone has a badly broken
wrist doesn’t convey as much as saying someone has a Salter-Harris II fracture
of the right distal radius with moderate lateral displacement and 28 degrees of
anterior angulation
...
But you do need to master the fundamentals, or the ABCs, so to speak, to be comfortable and confident with medical
terminology
...
A basic knowledge of the human anatomy helps, but more important is to know how each body system works independently and together with
other systems
...

Mastering medical terms is much easier than you think
...
New terms become easier once
you know the reasoning behind most medical terms
...
Once
you understand this, you will be well on your way to translating even the toughest medical terms — including terms you have never heard or seen before
...
Again, defer to the rule of breaking down the word
into parts
...



One of the best ways to practice the spelling is, of course, to write it down
...
Some
useful ideas for writing and recalling terms are



✓ Make lists of similar prefixes, roots, and suffixes based on what body
system they are associated with
...




✓ Draw simple maps of each system and label body part terms
...

You can also use this technique to identify locations of specific procedures
...
The root word is the foundation or basic meaning of
the word
...
They must be attached to a root word
...

When in doubt, look at the table of contents and check a specific body system’s chapter
...
Common medical vocabulary used today includes terms built from
Greek and Latin word parts, some of which were used by Hippocrates and
Aristotle more than 2,000 years ago
...
An
example would be Parkinson’s disease, named after the English physician
Dr
...

With the great advancements in medicine throughout the 20th century, medical language changed with the times and continues to do so today
...

Building on guidance from the Greek and Latin origins, medical terms began
to be professionalized in the mid-1800s
...
Dr
...

Electronic medical publishing took off during the 1980s thanks to advancements in database publishing and electronic storage
...
Check out Chapter 24
for a list of great resources
...
Hippocrates, considered the father of
medicine, was a student, teacher, and great physician
...
He stressed observation and induction
...


Chapter 2: Medical Terminology: The How and Why


The Hippocratic Oath — an oath of professional behavior sworn by physicians
beginning a medical career — is attributed to Hippocrates
...
With origins in ancient Rome and thanks to good, oldfashioned conquest, Latin quickly made its way through the world, solidifying
its rep as the language of choice for medicine and science
...

Look no further than the study of etymology to help you crack the code of
medical terms
...
Some examples of etymology, or word history, include



✓ Words with Latin origins: Femur, for example, is a Latin term referring
to a bone in the leg
...




✓ Eponyms: Words named after people, such as Parkinson’s disease
...
”
Etymologies were listed in early medical dictionaries, assuming the reader
had studied languages and could read Greek or Latin
...


Modernizing Medicine
With the advent of the medical dictionary, terminology came to the masses
with full force
...
Other modern applications of medical terminology
include (but are certainly not limited to):


✓ CAT scans



✓ DNA advancement



✓ Hundreds of new drugs on the market



✓ Investigative and diagnostic medicine

17

18

Part I: Living for Linguistics


✓ Joint replacements and other surgical procedures



✓ Laparoscopic surgeries



✓ MRIs



✓ Organ transplants



✓ Stem-cell research
Today medical terminology is used and needed in any occupation that is
remotely related to medicine and the normal functioning of the body
...


Chapter 3

Introducing the Big Three:
Prefixes, Roots, and
Suffixes
In This Chapter
▶ Finding your roots
▶ Getting to know prefixes
▶ Taking a brief look at suffixes

I

ntroducing the starting lineup for your medical terminology team!
Whether you realize it or not, most words are made up of individual parts
that contribute their own meaning
...
Often, they tell you where it comes from, too
...
The root is the main part of the word,
telling you in general the thing you are dealing with
...

Playing forward is the prefix
...

The suffix would be the goalkeeper, to really stretch this metaphor
...

Almost every medical term can be broken down into some combination of
prefixes, roots, and suffixes
...
There are many more roots than prefixes
and suffixes put together
...
The
combining form, or word root, specifies the body part the word is either
describing or associated with
...
This section shows two big lists of all the important roots that
can appear after any prefix or before any suffix
...
These are
the big daddies, the glue that holds all medical terms together
...
If you can’t find your root word here, you won’t
find it anywhere! We will not be undersold!

Exterior root words
Table 3-1 lists the root words and combining forms that pertain to the exterior of the body
...
Here are some examples:

✓ Ab- means away from (abduct), but admeans toward
...


✓ Ante-, pre-, and pro- mean before, but postmeans after
...

✓ Hyper-, supra-, and epi- all mean above
...

✓ Intra- and endo- mean within
...
These are contentious prefixes:

✓ Hyper-, supra-, and epi- mean above, but
hypo-, infra-, and sub- mean below
...

✓ Tachy- means fast, but brady- means slow
...


Chapter 3: Introducing the Big Three: Prefixes, Roots, and Suffixes

Interior root words
Now it’s time to meet the movers and shakers that best define your inner
self
...


Table 3-2

Beautiful on the Inside: Interior Root Words

Interior Root

What It Means

Abdomin/o

Abdomen

Acanth/o

Spiny or thorny

Acetabul/o

Acetabulum

Acromi/o

Acromium

Aden/o

Gland

Adip/o

Fat

Adren/o

Adrenal gland

Alveoli/o

Air sac

Angi/o

Vessel

An/o

Anus

Aort/o

Aorta

Arteri/o, arter/o

Artery

Arteriol/o

Arteriole

Aspir/o

To breathe in

Ather/o

Plaque, fat

Athr/o, articul/o

Joint

Atri/o

Atrium

Audi/o, aur/i

Hearing

Balan/o

Glans penis

Bio-

Life

Bronch/i, bronch/o

Bronchus

Bronchiol/o, bronchiol/i

Bronchiole

Carcin/o

Cancer

Cardi/o

Heart
(continued)

23

24

Part I: Living for Linguistics
Table 3-2 (continued)
Interior Root

What It Means

Cellul/o

Cell

Cerebell/o

Cerebellum

Cerebr/i, cerebr/o

Cerebrum

Cholangi/o

Bile duct

Chol/e

Bile

Cholecyst/o

Gallbladder

Choledoch/o

Common bile duct

Chondr/i, chondr/o

Cartilage

Chrom/o, chromat/o

Color

Col/o, colon/o

Colon

Colp/o

Vagina

Cost/o

Rib

Cry/o

Cold

Crypt/o

Hidden

Cutane/o

Skin

Cyan/o

Blue

Cysti, cyst/o

Bladder or cyst

Cyt/o

Cell

Dipl/o

Double, twice

Duoden/o

Duodenum

Encephal/o

Brain

Enter/o

Intestine

Episi/o

Vulva

Erythr/o

Red

Esophag/o

Esophagus

Fibr/o

Fibers

Galact/o

Milk

Gastr/o

Stomach

Glyc/o

Sugar

Gynec/o

Female

Chapter 3: Introducing the Big Three: Prefixes, Roots, and Suffixes
Interior Root

What It Means

Hemat/o, hem/o

Blood

Hepat/o, hepatic/o

Liver

Heter/o

Other, different

Hidr/o

Sweat

Hist/o, histi/o

Tissue

Hom/o, home/o

Same, alike

Hydr/o

Water, wet

Hyster/o

Uterus

Iatr/o

Treatment

Ile/o

Ileum (intestine)

Ili/o

Ilium (pelvic bone)

Intestin/o

Intestine

Jejun/o

Jejunum

Kerat/o

Cornea of eye, horny tissue

Lacrima

Tears

Laryng/o

Larynx

Leuk/o

White

Lipid/o

Fat

Lith/o

Stone (in gallbladder or kidney)

Lymph/o

Lymph vessels

Melan/o

Black

Men/o

Menses, menstruation

Mening/o

Meninges

Metr/a, metr/o

Uterus

My/o

Muscle

Myel/o

Bone marrow or spinal cord

Myring/o

Eardrum

Nat/o

Birth

Necr/o

Death

Nephr/o

Kidney

Neur/o

Nerve
(continued)

25

26

Part I: Living for Linguistics
Table 3-2 (continued)
Interior Root

What It Means

Oophor/o

Ovary

Orchid/o, orchi/o

Testis

Oss/eo, oss/i, ost/e, ost/eo

Bone

Palat/o

Roof of mouth

Path/o

Disease

Peritone/o

Peritoneum

Pharmac/o

Drug

Pharyng/o

Pharynx

Phleb/o

Vein

Phren/o

Diaphragm

Pleur/o

Pleura, rib (side)

Pneum/a, pneum/o

Lungs

Pneum/ato, pneum/ono

Lungs

Poli/o

Gray matter of nervous system

Proct/o

Rectum, anus

Pulmon/o

Lungs

Py/o

Pus

Pyel/o

Pelvis of kidney

Rect/o

Rectum

Ren/i, ren/o

Kidney

Sacr/o

Sacrum

Salping/o

Fallopian tube

Sarc/o

Flesh

Scapul/o

Scapula

Sept/o

Infection

Splen/o

Spleen

Spondyl/o

Vertebra

Stern/o

Sternum

Tend/o, ten/o, tendin/o

Tendon

Testicul/o

Testis

Chapter 3: Introducing the Big Three: Prefixes, Roots, and Suffixes
Interior Root

What It Means

Therm/o

Heat

Thorac/o

Chest

Thym/o

Thymus

Thyr/o

Thyroid gland

Thyroid/o

Thyroid gland

Tonsill/o

Tonsils

Trache/o

Trachea

Tympan/o

Eardrum

Ur/e, ur/ea, ur/eo, urin/o, ur/o

Urine

Ureter/o

Ureter

Urethr/o

Urethra

Uter/o

Uterus

Vas/o

Vas deferens

Vas/o, ven/o, ven/i

Vein

Vesic/o

Bladder

Viscer/o

Viscera (internal organs)

Xanth/o

Red, redness

Xer/o

Dry

It’s just semantics
It is only appropriate, then, that you take a
moment to digest what exactly is meant by the
word semantics
...

Have you ever heard someone say, “Let’s drill
down to semantics”? What she probably meant
was that she wanted to discuss the actual
meaning of whatever it was you were discussing
...


The word semantics is derived from the Greek
semantikos, meaning “significant
...

A morpheme is the smallest linguistic unit that
has semantic meaning
...
So the next time you look at
a two-letter prefix and think it’s just window
dressing, think again
...


27

28

Part I: Living for Linguistics

Prefix as Precursor
Think of the prefix as the welcome wagon for a term
...
It tells you something about what you are going to find
inside
...
A prefix appears
at the beginning of a word and tells the how, why, where, when, how much,
how many, position, direction, time, or status
...
For example, you probably know
that ultra- means something is extra, or beyond its normal scope
...
See? You’re a medical terminology whiz already
...

You might recognize many of the prefixes associated with medical terminology, because they have similar meanings in regular, everyday vernacular
...
If something is atypical, it is
not typical
...
The moral of this story is that
prefixes aren’t just window dressing
...


Common Prefixes
You can read a lot more about prefixes in Chapter 6, but to whet your
appetite Table 3-3 gives you a quick look at some of the most common prefixes that play a huge role in both common, everyday English and medical
terminology
...
Whereas the prefix gives you a clue into what to expect
in a word’s meaning, the suffix pulls no punches and tells you what is happening with a specific body part or system
...

The scope of suffix meanings is extremely wide
...
For example, the suffix -meter simply indicates an instrument used to
measure something, just as it does in other fields of study
...
You’ll meet several other forms of -graphy in our medical term discussions
...


Table 3-4

Summarizing Important Suffixes

Suffix

What It Means

-ac, -ic, -al, -ous, -tic

Related to, or pertaining to

-ate, -ize

Subject to, use

-ent, -er, -ist

Person, agent

-genic

Produced by

-gram

A written record

-graph

Instrument used to record

-graphy

Process of recording

-ism

Condition or theory

-itis

Inflammation

-ologist

One who studies, specialist

-ology

Study of, process of study

-oma

Tumor

-pathy

Disease, disease process

-phobia

Morbid fear of or intolerance

-scope

Instrument used to visually examine

-scopy

Process of visual examination

Chapter 4

Acronyms, Eponyms, Homonyms,
Multiples, and Plurals — Oh My!
In This Chapter
▶ Checking out acronyms, eponyms, and homonyms
▶ Discovering the common plural forms
▶ Applying different rules of pluralization to medical terms

A

fter you’ve got the basics under your belt, it’s time to branch out
...
You might think that in medical
terminology, multiples and plurals work just like they do for regular words in
the English language
...

Pluralized medical terms would be pretty easy to comprehend and remember
if all examples followed the same rules
...
To see this, all you
have to do is look to some basic examples from everyday conversation
...
Simple
...
So much for simply adding the s
...

For the most part, terms of Latin or Greek origin do not follow English rules
when it comes to pluralizing
...
But first, take a quick look at three common kinds of common medical terminology: acronyms, eponyms, and homonyms
...
Most acronyms are expressed in uppercase letters, but not
always
...

These terms are so well known that they have become acceptable as words
in their own right
...
Laser was an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation
...

There are, to put it mildly, many acronyms in medical terminology, some of
which are common, some not so common
...
Here are some common medical acronyms
...
Knowing the context in which an acronym is being used is very
important
...




A favorite acronym of many medical professionals is BM
...
Face it — everyone loves a good BM joke
...
An antonym is a word that means the opposite of

Chapter 4: Acronyms, Eponyms, Homonyms, Multiples, and Plurals — Oh My!
another word
...
With reference to medical terms, some prefixes can be paired as opposites
...


Table 4-1

Medical Antonyms

Prefix

What It Means

Ab-

Moving away from (abduction)

Ad-

Drawing toward (adduction)

Anterior-

Front

Posterior-

Back

Bio-

Life

Necro-

Death

Brady-

Slow

Tachy-

Fast

Cephalo-

Head (upward)

Caudo-

Tail (downward)

Endo-

Within, inside

Exo-

Outside

Eu-

Normal, well

Dys-

Difficult, unwell

Hyper-

Above or excessive

Hypo-

Below or deficient

Leuko-

White

Melano-

Black

Pre-

Before or in front of

Post-

After or behind
(continued)

33

34

Part I: Living for Linguistics
Table 4-1 (continued)
Prefix

What It Means

Proximal-

Near (think proximity)

Distal-

Away from (think distance)

Superior-

Above

Inferior-

Below

Eponyms
Eponyms are an unusual and interesting facet of the plural world
...
For example, Romulus is the eponym of Rome
...
In the medical field, a disease,
sign, operation, surgical instrument, syndrome, or test is often named after a
certain physician, surgeon, scientist, or researcher
...
For example, you can use Alzheimer’s
or Alzheimer
...
A numbering expressing the condition of a newborn infant
at 1 minute of age and again at 5 minutes
...
A progressive degenerative disease of the brain
...
A complex of symptoms caused by hyperactivity
of the adrenal cortex
...
A chromosomal disorder, also called trisomy 21, formerly
called mongolism
...
A rating of prostate cancer assigning scores of 1–5 for degrees of
primary and secondary growth
...
Named for Thomas
Hodgkin, an English physician (1798–1866)
...

Pain on dorsiflexion of the foot; a sign of thrombosis of deep veins of the
calf
...
Named after Wenzel
Treitz, a Czech physician (1819–1872)
...
Named
after a place, Old Lyme, Connecticut, where the disease was first
reported in 1975
...
It means a deformity or curvature of the penis caused
by fibrous tissue within the tunica albuginea
...




✓ Parkinson’s disease: Named for James Parkinson, English physician
(1755–1824)
...

As you can see, most of those famous people are no longer with us
...


Homonyms
Similar to the antonyms is the homonym
...
Some common English language homonyms would be meat and
meet, peal and peel, bare and bear, feet and feat, or pain and pane
...
Table 4-2 shows the most likely suspects
...
Read on to familiarize yourself with the
nuances of medical plural building
...


Medical Rule 1: Change the a ending to ae
In other words, vertebra becomes vertebrae
...
”


✓ Axilla, axillae



✓ Bursa, bursae



✓ Conjunctiva, conjunctivae



✓ Scapula, scapulae



✓ Sclera, sclerae

Medical Rule 2: Change the um ending to a
The a at the end is pronounced “aah
...
”


✓ Alveolus, alveoli



✓ Bronchus, bronchi

37

38

Part I: Living for Linguistics


✓ Coccus, cocci



✓ Embolus, emboli



✓ Fungus, fungi



✓ Glomerulus, glomeruli



✓ Meniscus, menisci



✓ Syllabus, syllabi (but syllabuses is also acceptable)
The exceptions to this rule include the following:



✓ Corpus, corpora



✓ Meatus, meatus (stays the same)



✓ Plexus, plexuses



✓ Viscus, viscera

Medical Rule 4: Change the is ending to es
The es is pronounced “eez
...


Chapter 4: Acronyms, Eponyms, Homonyms, Multiples, and Plurals — Oh My!
Medical Rule 6: When a term ends in yx,
ax, or ix, change the x to c and add es


✓ Appendix, appendices



✓ Calyx, calyces



✓ Calix, calices (Strange but true, both are correct)



✓ Thorax, thoraces

Medical Rule 7: When a term ends in nx,
change the x to g and add es


✓ Larynx, larynges



✓ Phalanx, phalanges

Medical Rule 8: For Latin medical terms that consist
of a noun and adjective, pluralize both terms


✓ Condyloma acuminatum, condylomata acuminata



✓ Placenta previa, placentae previae



✓ Verruca vulgaris, verrucae vulgares
There are (of course!) some exceptions to all these rules:



✓ Cornu, cornua



✓ Pons, pontes



✓ Vas, vasa

English rules of forming plurals
Many medical terms apply basic English rules for forming plurals
...


English Rule 1: Add an s


✓ Bronchoscope, bronchoscopes



✓ Disease, diseases



✓ Endoscope, endoscopes



✓ Finger, fingers



✓ Vein, veins

39

40

Part I: Living for Linguistics
English Rule 2: When a term ends in s, x, ch, or sh, add es


✓ Crutch, crutches



✓ Distress, distresses



✓ Patch, patches



✓ Stress, stresses

English Rule 3: When a term ends in y after
a consonant, change the y to i and add es


✓ Artery, arteries



✓ Bronchoscopy, bronchoscopies



✓ Endoscopy, endoscopies



✓ Ovary, ovaries



✓ Therapy, therapies

English Rule 4: When a term ends in o after a consonant, add nes


✓ Comedo, comedones
Exceptions:



✓ Embryo, embryos



✓ Placebo, placebos

Welcome to the Peanut Gallery: More
Exceptions to the Plural Rules
Medical professionals, including physicians, clinicians, and pharmacists,
often use measurements and their abbreviations to convey important information
...

For example, the phrase “The incision was several centimeters long” is acceptable because it is a vague, not an exact amount
...
” The measurement abbreviation cm is always used with a number
value and is always singular
...

Another example of common measurement is the tablespoon
...
Used with a specific number value, it
becomes 2 tablespoons
...
, not 2 tbsps
...

Single-digit numbers are made plural by adding an ’s
...
”
However, no apostrophe is used to form the plural of multiple-digit numbers,
including years
...
“She was born in the
1950s” (not the 1950’s)
...
Some medical examples include



✓ CVA, CVAs



✓ EEG, EEGs



✓ WBC, WBCs
But if the abbreviation is expressed in lowercase, then an ’s (with the apostrophe) is added to pluralize
...

These words are pronounced almost the same, but with a different spelling
and often a very different meaning
...
Table 4-3 shows
several examples
...
Don’t join the crowd!

Chapter 5

Say What? Pronunciation
and Usage
In This Chapter
▶ Simplifying your pronunciation methods
▶ Distinguishing prefix sounds from suffix sounds
▶ Applying pronunciation tips to everyday usage and word building

I

f you read Chapter 4, you now have a better idea of how medical terms are
formed
...
Even the Hollywood
hotshots who rush around the sets of Grey’s Anatomy and Nurse Jackie have
to learn how to say medical terms, and are paid well to do it convincingly
...


Hooked on Phonics
With medical terminology, sounds are not always pronounced the same as in
your everyday English pronunciation, and there are not even steadfast rules
that a combination of specific letters will always be pronounced in the same
way
...

The variety of possible letters and sound combinations can make — or at
least can seem to make — medical terms difficult to pronounce, especially if
you’ve never seen or heard the term before
...


46

Part I: Living for Linguistics


We can’t repeat this enough: By breaking the word down into basic parts —
prefix, root, and suffix — you can simplify the task of pronunciation
...
You will find that by adding a
variety of suffixes, not only does the prefix and suffix change the definition of
the term, more importantly, in many instances it changes the way the term
is pronounced
...


Pronouncing Common Prefixes
and Beginning Sounds
You have to start somewhere, so why not at the beginning? Because many
medical terms start with an odd (to the English speaker’s eye) combination
of letters, the pronunciation isn’t always obvious
...
Clear as mud, right? Let’s take a look at some common rules to
help clarify things a bit
...
The p
is silent, as it usually is when it appears at the beginning of a medical word
...

Examples:
Psychiatry: (sigh-KIYA-tree)
Psychology: (sigh-CALL-ogy)
Terms beginning with pn are pronounced only with the “n” sound
...

Example:
Pneumonia: (new-MOAN-ia)
Terms beginning with pt work exactly the same
...


Chapter 5: Say What? Pronunciation and Usage
Example:
Ptosis: (TOE-sis)
Terms beginning with ch often take on the hard consonant sound like a “k
...

Examples:
Cycle: (SIGH-cull)
Cytoplasm: (SIGH-toe-plazm)
Genetic: (je-NET-ic)
Giant: (J-EYE-unt)
But c and g have a hard sound before other letters
...

What if you cannot see the term, but only hear it? Could you find it in a medical dictionary? Some good, old-fashioned memorization rules will help you
recall those hard-to-pronounce beginnings
...
One might think that pronouncing the endings of words is fairly self-explanatory
...
As such, letters don’t always sound
like what they look like
...

For terms ending in i (usually to form a plural), the i is always pronounced
“eye
...

Examples:
Naris, nares: (nar-EEZ)
Testis, testes: (test-EEZ)

Pronouncing Common Combinations
Now that you have established a few pronunciation rules, consider what happens to the pronunciation of a term when you combine a prefix with a root
word or combining form, together with a suffix, and often a combining vowel
...



Keep a few simple explanations in mind before you start combining word
parts
...
Modifies the word root that it
precedes
...




✓ Word root/combining form: Usually indicates a body part, such as
cardi/o for heart, gastr/o for stomach, and neur/o for nerve
...
Usually, though not always,
indicates a condition, procedure, disorder, or disease
...
A combining vowel is not used when the suffix begins
with a vowel because this would make pronunciation difficult
...
For example,
gastr/o pertains to the stomach
...
If the combining vowel o were not
removed, the result would be gastroitis creating a double vowel and a word
more difficult to pronounce (GAS-TRO-it-is)
...
To do that, you have to get brave and start adding all the
word parts together
...
You can do this in
two ways
...
Once the suffix is defined, you can
then move to the beginning of the word to define the prefix, if there is one,
and the word root
...

Others prefer to tackle the term from the beginning, establishing a meaning
for the prefix first, then moving to the word root, and to the suffix last of all
...
Following
are some examples:


✓ Euthyroid (YOU-thyroid): The prefix eu means normal
...




✓ Febrile (FEB-ril): Means to have a fever
...




✓ Hypertension (high-per-TEN-shun): High blood pressure
...
Though there
is not much difference in the pronunciation of hypertension and hypotension, and one means the opposite of the other, it is important to
hear — and see — the different spelling of the prefix application
...




✓ Polyuria (pol-ee-YOUR-ee-ah): Excessive or frequent urination
...
Different suffixes can
mean different pronunciations, particularly in respect to colors
...
With so many root words, prefixes, and suffixes, the possible combinations
would be endless, and the medical dictionary would become a set of encyclopedias
...
Most commonly used terms are now
listed alphabetically, but just because you
can’t find a term in the dictionary right away
doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist
...


Even the more grounded basis of a word, the root or combining form, can
change the way you say and see words
...
Let’s use the
simple, everyday stomach ailment as an example
...
Lucky for you, there is a short list of very common suffixes that pertain to procedures
...

Here are some of the suffixes pertaining to procedures that create changes in
pronunciation:


✓ -centesis: A surgical puncture to withdraw or aspirate fluid



✓ -ectomy: Surgical removal of



✓ -otomy: Surgical incision or cutting into



✓ -ostomy: Surgical creation of an artificial opening



✓ -plasty: Surgical repair



✓ -scope: An instrument used for visual examination



✓ -scopy: To see, or a visual examination



✓ -gram: Resulting record or picture



✓ -graphy: The process of recording a record or picture
Using those suffixes, watch the change in pronunciation depending on the
suffix used:



✓ Appendicitis (a-pen-di-SITE-is): Inflammation of the appendix



✓ Appendectomy (ap-pen-DEK-toe-me): Surgical removal of the appendix



✓ Abdominocentesis (ab-DOM-in-o-sen-TEE-sis): Surgical puncture of the
abdominal cavity



✓ Abdominoplasty (ab-DOM-in-o-plasty): Surgical repair of the abdomen

Chapter 5: Say What? Pronunciation and Usage


✓ Bronchoscope (BRONK-o-scope): Instrument used to examine bronchus



✓ Bronchoscopy (bronk-OSK-oh-pee): Visual examination of bronchus
using a bronchoscope



✓ Cardiogram (CARD-ee-oh-gram): Film produced by a cardiography



✓ Cardiography (car-dee-OG-rah-fee): Process of recording heart activity



✓ Colostomy (koh-LOST-oh-me): Surgical creation of an opening in the
colon



✓ Colotomy (koh-LOT-oh-me): Surgical cutting into the colon



✓ Endoscope (EN-DO-scope): Instrument used for internal visual
examination



✓ Endoscopy (en-DOS-koh-pee): Visual examination using an endoscope



✓ Hypertropic (hi-per-TROF-ic): Pertaining to hypertrophy



✓ Hypertrophy (hi-PER-tro-fee): Increase in size of an organ or body part



✓ Mammogram (MAMM-oh-gram): Resulting record of a mammography



✓ Mammography (mamm-OG-rah-fee): Process of examining breasts



✓ Mammoplasty (mamm-oh-PLAS-tee): Surgical repair to the breast



✓ Oophoritis (ou-for-EYE-tis): Inflammation of an ovary



✓ Oophorectomy (ou-for-ECT-om-ee): Surgical removal of an ovary



✓ Prostatectomy (pros-ta-TEK-toe-mee): Surgical removal of the prostate



✓ Prostatomegaly (PROS-ta-toe-MEG-a-lee): Enlargement of the prostate



✓ Salpingectomy (sal-pin-JECT-oh-me): Surgical removal of a fallopian
tube



✓ Salpingogram (sal-PING-oh-gram): Resulting record from salpingography



✓ Salpingography (sal-pinj-OG-rah-fee): Procedure to examine fallopian
tube
Some of the examples here demonstrate how the pronunciation of a medical word can change just by adding gram versus graphy or ectomy versus
otomy
...
Take scope versus scopy
...




So, practice your pronunciation
...
This crazy word
is only pronounced “ou-ou-for-oh” by the surgeon when he or she is dictating notes to be
sure the transcriptionist spells it correctly with
the double-O
...
”
If it sounds like people are mooing, then you
know they’re saying it correctly
...
dummies
...


In this part 
...
To recap:
Prefixes show up at the beginning of a word and tell the how, why,
where, when, how much, how many, position, direction, time, or status
...
Though you see in
this chapter some new and unfamiliar prefixes that only exist in the medical
world, for the most part medical prefixes work just like any other prefix in the
English language
...
The
combining form or root, as explained in Chapter 3, specifies the body part
...
When all three work together, they make one powerful word
...
Later in the chapter, we go over how
these prefixes fit into everyday medical life and language
...


Chapter 6: As It Was in the Beginning: Prefixes

Kissing cousins: Different names, same meanings
Some prefixes look totally different, but have
the exact same meaning
...
”

Dys- and mal- both mean “bad” or “painful
...
”
Intra- and endo- mean “within
...
”

F–J prefixes


✓ Hemi-, semi-: Half, half of



✓ Hyper-: Above, excessive, beyond



✓ Hyp-, hypo-: Below, beneath, deficient



✓ Im-, in-: Into, in, within



✓ Infra-: Below or beneath



✓ Inter-: Between



✓ Intra-: Within, inside



✓ Intro-: Into or within



Infra-, inter-, and intra- are always mixed up and used inappropriately
...
”
Ante-, pre-, and pro- all mean “before,” but
post- means “after
...
”



Tachy- means “fast,” whereas brady- means
“slow
...
”
Hyper- means “excessive,” but hypo- means
“deficient
...
For example, you might remember the meaning of macro- by thinking
about the word macroeconomics, which is about economics on a large scale
...
Keep in mind that the following is not by any stretch
the end-all, be-all, conclusive list of medical words, but it’s a nice sampling of
prefixes at work
...
You can
see a nice mix of amounts, directions, and changes in these prefixes:


✓ Amenorrhea: Without period or menses, as in pregnancy



✓ Anovulatory: Ovaries not releasing eggs, can be hormonally induced



✓ Bilateral: Lateral meaning side; both sides



✓ Bradycardia: Slow heart rate



✓ Bradyarrhythmia: Slow, irregular heartbeat



✓ Circumferential: Around the outside



✓ Dysfunctional: Difficult or painful; dysfunctional uterine bleeding



✓ Exocervix: Part of the cervix away from the uterus



✓ Endocervix: Inner part of cervix, within the uterus



✓ Hypertension: Excessive or high blood pressure



✓ Hyperemesis: Excessive vomiting



✓ Hypotensive: Low or below normal blood pressure



✓ Infraumbilical: Below or beneath the umbilicus



✓ Multiloculated: A tumor or cyst having many or multiple locules, small
spaces or cavities often filled with fluid



✓ Oliguria: Scanty, inadequate amount of urine production



✓ Oligomenorrhea: Scanty menstrual flow



✓ Paraovarian: Beside an ovary



✓ Pericardial: Around the heart

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✓ Periurethral: Around the opening of the urethra



✓ Polydipsia: Excessive thirst (symptom of diabetes)



✓ Polyuria: Excessive urination (also symptom of diabetes)



✓ Pseudocyst: A structure resembling a cyst; but not an actual cyst



✓ Subcostal: Beneath or under the ribs



✓ Subumbilical: Area beneath or under the umbilicus

In the doctor’s office and hospital
Check out this sampling of words you might hear around the physician’s
office or in the hospital ER:


✓ Abduction: Moving a body part away from the point of origin

This term is used in orthopedics to test range of motion of an arm or leg
...



✓ Adduction: Moving towards the point of origin; opposite of abduction;
usually dictated or pronounced “A-D-duction
...
k
...
“the pregnancy”)



✓ Premenstrual: Period of time before a menstrual period begins



✓ Pseudopregnancy: A false pregnancy



✓ Tachycardia: Rapid or fast heart rate



✓ Tachyarrhythmia: Rapid or fast heart arrhythmia

Chapter 6: As It Was in the Beginning: Prefixes

In the pharmacy and research lab
Heaven knows there are tons of long, hard-to-spell, 25-cent words used in the
pharmacy and the lab
...



✓ Microscopic: Very small; only seen using a microscope



✓ Neoplasia: Condition of new or recent (cell) growth



✓ Neoplasm: New or recent growth; could be a tumor or cyst

Retro Root Rewind A–M
So you know the prefixes
...
For the N–Z root words, see the
table at the end of this chapter
...
That was a lot of roots
...
This might be a good time for a breather
...


Table 6-2

Recapping Root Words (N–Z)

Root Word

What It Means

Nas/o

Nose

Nat/o

Birth

Necr/o

Death

Neo

New

Nephr/o

Kidney

Neur/o, neur/i

Nerve

Ocul/o

Eye

Odont/o

Tooth

Onych/o

Nail

Chapter 6: As It Was in the Beginning: Prefixes
Root Word

What It Means

Oophor/o

Ovary

Ophthalm/o

Eye

Orchid/o, orchi/o

Testis

Oss/eo, oss/i, ost/e, ost/eo

Bone

Palat/o

Roof of mouth

Pancreatic/o

Pancreas

Path/o

Disease

Perine/o

Perineum

Peritone/o

Peritoneum (membrane lining
abdominal and pelvic cavities)

Phac/o, phak/o

Lens (eye)

Pharmac/o

Drug

Pharyng/o

Pharynx (throat)

Phleb/o

Vein

Phren/o

Diaphragm

Pleur/o, pleur/a

Pleura, rib (side)

Pneum/a/o, pneum/ono, pneum/ato

Lungs

Poli/o

Gray matter of nervous system

Proct/o

Rectum, anus

Pulmon/o

Lungs

Pyel/o

Pelvis of kidney

Pylor/o

Pylorus

Py/o

Pus

Rect/o

Rectum

Ren/i, ren/o

Kidney

Sacr/o

Sacrum

Salping/o

Fallopian tube

Sarc/o

Flesh

Scapul/o

Scapula

Sept/o

Infection or septum

Sigmoid/o

Sigmoid

Spermat/o, spermat/a

Sperm
(continued)

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Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies
Table 6-2 (continued)
Root Word

What It Means

Splen/o

Spleen

Spondyl/o

Vertebra

Stern/o

Sternum

Stomat/o, stom/a

Mouth or orifice

Tend/o, ten/o, tendin/o

Tendon

Testicul/o

Testis

Therm/o

Heat

Thorac/o

Chest

Thym/o

Thymus

Thyr/o, thyroid/o

Thyroid gland

Tonsill/o

Tonsils

Trache/o

Trachea

Tympan/o

Eardrum

Ung/o

Nail

Ur/e, ur/ea, ur/eo, urin/o, ur/o

Urine

Ureter/o

Ureter

Urethr/o

Urethra

Uter/o

Uterus

Vas/o

Vas deferens

Vas/o, ven/o

Vein

Vesic/o

Bladder

Viscer/o

Viscera

Xanth/o

Yellow

Xer/o

Dry

Chapter 7

So It Shall Be in the End: Suffixes
In This Chapter
▶ Defining common suffixes
▶ Categorizing suffixes by meaning
▶ Getting to know the most likely suffix uses
▶ Reviewing some root words

T

he suffix has a job that’s as important as the prefix’s and the root word’s
...
The suffix is always
at the end of a word and usually indicates a procedure, a condition, or a
disease
...
The suffix is all business and tells
us what is happening with a specific body part or system — usually what is
wrong with the body or which procedure is being used to diagnose or fix it
...
Like prefixes, many suffixes
have similar meanings to those used in plain old, everyday English, whereas
some are wildly different
...


-itis
The suffix -itis simply indicates an inflammation of some kind
...
Here’s a quick sample:


✓ Tonsillitis: Inflammation of the tonsils



✓ Bronchitis: Inflammation of the bronchi



✓ Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint

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Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies

-oma
Remember the goofy yet memorable David Letterman joke, “Oprah, Uma
...
”? Well, meet -oma
...
It can also pertain to
a neoplasm, or new growth
...
Some -omas you might have heard of:


✓ Carcinoma: Malignant (cancerous) tumor or growth



✓ Leiomyoma: Benign (non-cancerous) tumor derived from smooth
muscle
...




✓ Melanoma: Tumor of the melanocytic (melanocytes in the skin) system
of the skin, a highly malignant and quickly metastasizing (spreading)
tumor
...


-pathy
The last of the big three is the -pathy suffix, which indicates a disease process
...



✓ Cardiomyopathy: Disease process involving the muscles of the heart



✓ Cardiopathy: Disease process involving the heart



✓ Neuropathy: Disease process involving the nervous system



✓ Osteopathy: Disease process involving bone

And lots more suffixes
There are, of course, many, many more suffixes that are just as important as
the big three, though they may not be quite as recognizable to you (yet)
...

Table 7-1 lists several you should get to know
...
All four are difficult to pronounce and are almost always misspelled —
usually with one r being left out
...
Let’s start with the
place closest to you: your own body
...
Once you
do that, you can move on to general word recognition
...
Because you have spent so much time going over
these individual building blocks, you can now begin to use what you know to
piece together the larger puzzle of knowing whole words
...
Approximately 75 percent of all medical
terms are based on Latin or Greek terms
...
All the root words and combining forms from Chapter 3 (and Chapters 6
and 7) can morph into all kinds of different words that explain everything from
everyday common conditions and procedures to pathology and pharmacology
...


76

Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies
Table 8-1 lists many examples of where these root words can take you on
your medical terminology journey
...
Table 8-2 is your ticket
...
Some, such as those in Table 8-3, specifically detail the different
kinds of pathological conditions associated with root words
...
Also performs autopsies
...

Knowing your word parts and how to break down a medical term by its word
parts is a vital method you can use to understand its definition
...

When you understand a word part and understand the word part’s meaning,
it is easy to analyze the definition of a medical term
...
When you know the
correct meaning of a word, there is less chance of using a sound-alike word
inappropriately
...

Now, let’s take on some larger words and try to break them down using the
rules
...


86

Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies

Identifying word elements
At the beginning of a medical term, you often (but not always) find the prefix,
which can indicate the direction, the where, the when, and the amount
...
Some root
word meanings are obvious and easy to understand, like arteri/o for artery,
abdomin/o for abdomen, testicul/o for testicle, and tonsill/o for tonsil
...

The suffix at the end of a term is often your first clue to the definition of the
term
...



There is always a suffix at the end of a medical term
...

It’s important to remember that the suffix always has the same meaning, no
matter what root word it’s tacked on to
...
From the suffix, back up to the prefix, if there is one, and
finally, look at the root word
...
Changing the prefix or the suffix changes the
meaning of the term
...
Watch how the
prefix changes the time frame
...
Changing the prefix to peri- would be perioperative, indicating the time or the events around or during an operation
...
By using the three different prefixes, these
words sound somewhat alike but are quite different in their meanings
...
”

Chapter 9: Deconstruction Junction: Breaking Down Words
Remember abduction, a kidnapping, or being taken away, as a memory key to
tell the two apart
...
Think of dysfunctional (not the dis in discomfort)
...
”
The prefix inter-, meaning “between or among,” is often mistaken for intra-,
which means “within or inside
...
For intra-, think of an intrauterine contraceptive
device, used within or inside the uterus
...

Each time you see intra- before a root word, it always means “within or inside
of
...
”



Prefixes are joined to a root word without the use of a hyphen, even when a
double vowel results as in perioperative, intrauterine
...


Defining the root word
The root word describes the body parts involved in the medical term
...
At the very least, you’ll know what
body part it refers to, which can help you narrow down the possible prefix
and suffix suspects
...


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Medical terms always have a suffix but not always a prefix
...


Identifying the combining vowel
The combining vowel, usually an o, joins the root word to a suffix
...

Take the root word neuro (for “nerve,” right?) as an example
...
” Using the combining vowel o
to join these together, we would have neuroitis, which is not only difficult to
pronounce but also contains a double vowel
...


Defining the suffix
As you know, the suffix indicates a procedure, disease, disorder, or condition, and you look at it first
...
It means
“inflammation,” so every time you see -itis, you know it means something is
inflamed
...
” Gastr/o is the root word for “stomach,” so
gastritis is “inflammation of the stomach
...
”
When you put -ectomy with tonsil, you have tonsillectomy, removal of the
tonsils
...



The word tonsil (or tonsils) has only one l, but when it’s made into a combining form such as tonsillitis or tonsillectomy, the l is doubled
...
More memory work!
Suffixes as “adjectives” help describe the root word
...
” The suffix -ologist
refers to “one who studies or practices a specialized medical field
...
” The common suffix -pathy means “disease
...
Cardiology is the study of heart diseases
...
Neurology, then, is the study of nerves or the nervous
system, and the neurologist is the physician who specializes in neurology
...


Going Deeper into Suffixes
Check out some more suffix examples
...
That means abdominocentesis is surgical
puncture of the abdominal cavity
...
” When you see -ectomy at the end of any term, no matter how
long or how difficult or confusing the first part of the word is, it means surgical removal of something
...

But, sadly, it’s not always that easy
...
How about the word salpingo-oophorectomy? The
-ectomy we know indicates the surgical removal of something
...
Therefore, salpingo-oophorectomy is surgical removal of a fallopian tube and ovary
...
Surgical removal of a fallopian tube only would be salpingectomy
...
This is there mainly to aid with pronunciation and
to avoid a triple “o” vowel with the combining of the two roots
...

Another suffix related to procedures is -graphy, meaning the process of
recording a picture or a record
...
Suffixes -gram and -graph are used to describe
the finished product, the recording or picture
...
The arteriogram or arteriograph is the film
that is produced by the arteriography
...
A colostomy is a surgical creation of an
opening between the colon and the body surface
...
The suffix -otomy means “surgical cutting into,” or a surgical incision
...




It is important to know the difference between “ostomy” and “otomy” — there
is only one letter difference, but a big difference in the meaning
...
The suffix -plasty means “surgical repair
...
A term associated with this suffix is mammoplasty
...
A reduction mammoplasty would be surgical reduction in the size of the breast
...
This
involves the visual examination of the interior of a body cavity or organ using
an endoscope
...



In medicine today, more and more diagnostic procedures are being performed
using the endoscopic method
...
Small
incisions (also known as portals) are made into skin, and the laparoscope is
inserted through the portals
...




Female sterilizations, hysterectomies, gallbladder removal, and appendectomies, just to name a few, are now being done laparoscopically
...
For example, a gallbladder removed by routine upper abdominal incision requires a recovery period of four to six weeks; performed laparoscopically, with only portals to heal, the time is cut to two weeks
...
You have already covered a few,
but let’s look at some
...
” Arthralgia
would refer to the pain and suffering of joints
...
” The suffix -dynia also means “pain
...
”
We already know -itis means “inflammation
...
You could have an -itis of almost any
part of your body
...

The suffix -malacia means “abnormal softening,” most often used referring
to bone disorders, but it does mean abnormal softening, and arteriomalacia
refers to abnormal softening of the walls of an artery or arteries
...
” It can be coupled with
many body parts or organs
...
Hepatomegaly is enlargement of the
liver
...
And hepatosplenomegaly would be enlargement of the liver and spleen, a doublebarreled root word
...
Gastrosis means a disease (any
disease) of the stomach
...
Diverticulosis
means outpouchings of the intestinal wall
...


Adding Up Individual Word Meanings
Just as in a math problem, you can add up the parts of a word and get one
coherent answer, one complete meaning
...
Now go
back to the beginning
...
Broken down, then, a gastroenterologist is a physician who studies and treats diseases of the stomach and intestines, performing a medical service known as gastroenterology
...

Let’s take a trip through the body to find some not so easy terms
...




✓ Ana/tomy: -tomy (“process of cutting”) + ana (“apart”) = study of body
structure (to study, one must cut up or dissect)



✓ Arthro/-ophthalmo/pathy: -pathy (“condition or disease”) + arthro
(“joint”) + ophthalmo (“eye”) = disease affecting joints and eyes



✓ Auto/opsy: -opsy (“to view”) + auto (“self”) = examination of body after
death (yes, it’s a stretch)



✓ Bio/logy: -logy (“the study of”) + bio (“life”) = study of living things



✓ Cerebro/malacia: -malacia (“softening”) + cerebro (“brain”) = softening
of the brain



✓ Cerebro/vascul/ar: -ar (“pertaining to”) + cerebro (“brain”) + vasculo
(“vessel”) = pertaining to the brain and blood vessels



✓ Choledocho/litho/tripsy: -tripsy (“crushing”) + choledocho (“common
bile duct of the gallbladder”) + litho (“stone”) = crushing of stones in the
common bile duct of the gallbladder



✓ Chondro/malacia: -malacia (“softening”) + chondro (“cartilage”) = softening of cartilage

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✓ Chondr/oma: -oma (“mass or tumor”) + chondro (“cartilage”) = tumor of
cartilage



✓ Costo/chondr/al: -al (“pertaining to”) + costo (“rib”) + chondro (“cartilage”) = pertaining to the ribs and cartilage



✓ Crani/otomy: -otomy (“cutting into”) + cranio (“skull”) = cutting into the
skull



✓ Dermat/itis: -itis (“inflammation”) + dermato (“skin”) = inflammation of
the skin



✓ Dermato/plasty: -plasty (“surgical reconstruction”) + dermato (“skin”) =
surgical reconstruction of the skin



✓ Encephalo/megaly: -megaly (“enlargement”) + encephalo (“brain”) =
enlargement of the brain



✓ Encephalo/pathy: -pathy (“disease”) + encephalo (“brain”) = brain
disease



✓ Esophago/gastro/duodeno/scopy: -scopy (“visual examination”) +
esphago (“esophagus”) + gastro (“stomach”) + duodeno (“duodenum”) =
visual examination of the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum



✓ Glyc/emia: -emia (“blood condition”) + glyco (“sugar”) = sugar in the
blood

Then, by adding prefixes to glycemia, we get
Hyper/glyc/emia: -hyper (“excessive”) = excessive sugar in blood
Hypo/glyc/emia: -hypo (“insufficient”) = insufficient or low amount of
sugar in the blood


✓ Gyneco/mastia: -mastia (“breast”) + gyneco (“woman/female”) = excessive development of male breast tissue



✓ Hemat/emesis: -emesis (“vomiting”) + hemato (“blood”) = vomiting of
blood



✓ Hemi/gastr/ectomy: -ectomy (“surgical removal of”) + hemi (“half”) +
gastro (“stomach”) = surgical removal of half the stomach



✓ Hemo/lysis: -lysis (“breakdown or destruction”) + hemo (“blood”) =
breakdown of blood



✓ Hyper/cholesterol/emia: -emia (“blood condition”) + hyper (“excessive
or above normal”) + cholesterol = excessive amount of cholesterol in
blood



✓ Hyper/emesis: -emesis (“vomiting”) + hyper (“excessive”) = excessive
vomiting



✓ Hyper/hidr/osis: -osis (“abnormal condition”) + hyper (“excessive or
above normal”) + hidro (“sweat”) = excessive secretion of sweat or
excessive sweating

Chapter 9: Deconstruction Junction: Breaking Down Words


✓ Hystero/salpingo/gram: -gram (“a record”) + hystero (“uterus”) + salpingo (“fallopian tube”) = x-ray record of the uterus and fallopian tubes



✓ Inter/vertebral: -vertebral (“pertaining to vertebrae or a vertebra”) +
inter (“between”) = between vertebrae or a vertebra



✓ Intra/cranial: -cranial (“pertaining to the skull”) + intra (“within”) = pertaining to within the skull



✓ Jejuno/ile/ostomy: -ostomy (“artificial surgical opening”) + jejuno (“jejunum”) + ileo (“ileum”) = surgical opening or new connection between the
jejunum and ileum



✓ Labio/glosso/pharyng/eal: - eal (“pertaining to”) + labio (“lips”) + glosso
(“tongue”) + pharyngo (“pharynx”) = pertaining to the lips, tongue, and
throat



✓ Laryngo/tracheo/bronch/itis: -itis (“inflammation”) + laryngo (“larynx”) +
trachea (“trachea”) + broncho (“bronchus”) = inflammation of the larynx,
trachea, and bronchus (croup)



✓ Leio/myo/sarcoma: -sarcoma (“malignant tumor”) + leio (“smooth”) +
myo (“muscle”) = tumor of smooth muscle



✓ Leuko/penia: -penia (“lack of or deficiency”) + leuko (“white/white blood
cells”) = deficient amount of white blood cells



✓ Micro/dactyly: micro (“small”) + dactyly (“fingers or toes”) = pertaining
to small fingers and/or toes



✓ Nephro/pexy: -pexy (“surgical fixation”) + nephro (“kidney”) = surgical
fixation of a kidney



✓ Neur/itis: -itis (“inflammation”) + neuro (“nerve”) = inflammation of a
nerve



✓ Oligo/sperm/ia: -ia “(condition”) + sperm (“spermatozoa”) + olio (“too
little, too few”) = a subnormal concentration or number of spermatozoa
in seminal fluid



✓ Osteo/arthro/pathy: -pathy (condition or disease) + osteo (“bone”) +
arthro (“joint”) = condition or disease affecting bones and joints



✓ Oto/rhino/laryngo/logist: -logist (“person who studies”) + oto (“ear”) +
rhino (“nose”) + laryngo (“larynx/throat”) = doctor specialized in otorhinolaryngology = ear, nose, and throat



✓ Para/nasal: -nasal (“pertaining to nose”) + para (“beside or near”) =
beside or near the nose



✓ Peri/neur/itis: -itis (“inflammation”) + peri (“around”) + neuro (“nerve”) =
inflammation around a nerve



✓ Pneumo/conio/sis: -sis (“condition”) + conio (“dust”) + pneumo (“lung”) =
lung condition caused by inhalation of dust particles

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✓ Post/mortem: -mortem (“death”) + post (“following or after”) = after
death



✓ Presby/opia: -opia (“vision”) + presby (“old age”) = vision impaired due
to aging



✓ Presby/cusis: -cusis (“hearing”) + presby (“old age”) = diminished hearing due to aging



✓ Respiro/meter: -meter (“to measure”) + respiro (“to breathe”) = instrument to measure extent of respiratory movements



✓ Rhabdo/myo/sarcoma: -oma (“tumor”) + rhabdo (“rod shaped”) + myo
(“muscle”) + sarc (“flesh/tissue”) = malignant tumor of muscle tissue
made up of rod-shaped cells



✓ Rhino/kyphosis: -kyphosis (“humped condition” + rhino (“nose”) = a
humpback condition of the nose



✓ Sialo/lith/otomy: - otomy (“surgical incision into”) + sialo (“salivary
gland”) + lith (“stone or calculus”) = incision into a salivary gland or
duct to remove a stone



✓ Somn/ambul/ism: -ism (“condition”) + somn (“sleep”) + ambulo (“to
walk”) = condition of sleep walking



✓ Thoraco/myo/dynia: -dynia (“pain”) + thoraco (“chest/thorax”) + myo
(“muscle”) = pain in the muscles of the chest wall



✓ Thrombo/phleb/itis: -itis (“inflammation”) + thrombo (“clot”) + phlebo
(“vein”) = inflammation of a vein with clot formation



✓ Torti/collis: -is (“condition”) + torti (“twisted”) + collum (“neck”) = condition in which the neck is twisted to one side

Chapter 10

An Org Chart to Live By:
Organization of the Body
In This Chapter
▶ Distinguishing the different branches of science that help you study the body
▶ Discovering the building blocks of the body
▶ Getting to know anatomical regions, planes, and cavities

B

efore we get into the real nitty-gritty of the source of all these magnificent medical terms — your body, that is — you may want to first get to
know the big picture of your body
...
The body appears to be a solid structure from
the outside
...


Looking at the Big Picture
There are all sorts of ways to look at the human body
...
Let’s start with the figurative,
as in the different kinds of science used to analyze the body
...

The branches of science that cover the study of the body are as follows:


✓ Anatomy means “cutting apart
...

The “cutting apart” is the method used (dissection) to study the structure of the human body
...




✓ Embryology studies the origin (beginnings) and the development of an
organism
...
After eight weeks, the developing organism is known as a fetus
...




✓ Pathology studies the changes caused by disease to the structures of
the body or changes due to disease that alter the functions of the body
...


Cells
The cell is the basic, smallest unit of life
...
Groups of different types of
tissue join together to form an organ
...



The body is maintained by metabolism (meta means “change,” bolus refers to
“mass,” and ism is “a condition”)
...
When metabolism stops, an organism dies
...
Specialized cells are responsible for the functions of
growth, secretions, excretions, nutrition, and reproduction
...
The shapes of most
typical cells are as follows:



✓ Epithelial or skin cell: May be square and flat



✓ Adipocyte or fat cell: Contains large vacant spaces for fat storage



✓ Muscle cell: Long and slender



✓ Nerve cell: May be long and have fingerlike extensions, which carry
impulses



✓ Gamete (sex) cell: Two types only: sperm and egg
Each cell has a membrane, forming the exterior boundary; cytoplasm that makes
up the body of the cell; and a nucleus, the small control center of the cell that
contains the chromosomes
...
Genes are regions within the chromosomes
...
Each gene is composed of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), the chemical that regulates the activities
of the cell
...
That’s why no two individuals are alike, except
for identical twins
...
The body is made up of four different types of tissue:


✓ Connective tissue supports and encases body structures
...
It holds organs in place
and connects body parts to each other
...




✓ Epithelial tissue: Found in the skin and in the lining of blood vessels,
this makes up the outer covering of external and internal body surfaces
(such as skin and mucous membranes) and the lining of the digestive,
respiratory, and urinary tracts
...
The main function of muscle tissue is
to contract
...
Nervous tissue needs more oxygen and
more nutrients than any other body tissue
...
For example, the skin is an organ made up of connective, nerve, and epithelial tissue
...
Several organs join
together to form a system and perform a body function
...

Some of the major body systems include the following:


✓ The cardiovascular system includes the heart and blood vessels and
carries the blood throughout the body
...
This system digests and
absorbs food and excretes waste
...


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✓ The integumentary system includes the hair, skin, nails, and sweat and
oil glands and provides an outer protective covering
...




✓ The musculoskeletal system, composed of bones, muscles, tendons,
and ligaments, provides the framework for the body, supports organs,
and permits movement in the body
...




✓ The respiratory system includes the trachea, lungs, and bronchi and
provides the exchange of gases, absorbs oxygen, and expels carbon
dioxide
...




✓ The urinary system manufactures and excretes urine
...
It has
five body cavities
...

The five body cavities include the following:


✓ The abdominal cavity contains the stomach, intestines, liver, spleen,
gallbladder, pancreas, ureters, and kidneys
...




✓ The pelvic cavity contains the urinary bladder, urethra, part of the large
intestine, and the rectum, uterus, and vagina in the female, and prostate
in the male
...




✓ The thoracic or chest cavity contains the esophagus, trachea, lungs,
heart, and aorta
...
The
pleural cavity surrounds the lungs
...
Visceral pleura is closest to the lungs
...
) The mediastinum is the
area between the lungs
...


Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body


The cranial and spinal cavities are dorsal body cavities, because they are
located on the back part of the body
...

The thoracic and abdominal cavities are separated by a muscular partition
called the diaphragm
...

Table 10-1 lists some root words related to body structure and organization
...


Table 10-2

Structural Suffixes

Suffix

What It Means

Example Term

What It Means

-cyte

Cell

Erythrocyte

Red blood cell

-gen

Agent that causes

Carcinogen

Agent causing cancer

-genic

Producing

Carcinogenic

Has cancer-causing
properties
(continued)

99

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Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies
Table 10-2 (continued)
Suffix

What It Means

Example Term

What It Means

-ologist

One who studies/
practices

Cytologist

Physician who studies
cells

-oma

Tumor or swelling

Myoma

Tumor in the muscle

-osis

Abnormal
condition

Cytosis

Abnormal condition
of cells

-pathy

Disease

Neuropathy

A disease of the
nerves

-plasm

Growth or
formation

Neoplasm

A new growth

-sarcoma

Malignant tumor

Myosarcoma

Malignant muscle
tumor

Directional Terms and Anatomical Planes
An anatomical plane is an imaginary flat plate or field
...
Anatomic planes provide
further division of the body, again to identify a specific location or area
...



✓ The frontal or coronal plane is a vertical plane dividing the body into
anterior (front) and posterior (back) portions
...




✓ The sagittal plane is a vertical plane that passes from front to back,
dividing the body into right and left sides
...

The anatomical planes of the body are used in radiology when specific body
location or direction is necessary
...
Whether a patient is standing, or lying down face up, the directional
terms are always applied in the same manner
...


Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body
When referring to the front of the body, the terms anterior and ventral are
used
...
With
the waistline of the anatomical position as a guideline, above the waistline is
referred to as cephalad (“head” or “upward”) or superior (“above”)
...

Superior and inferior are also used to describe body parts in relation to one
another in general
...
The term distal refers to “away from the point of origin” (think of
distance)
...

Distal and proximal are two directional terms that seem to pose problems
...
Using the arm as an example, the proximal portion of the arm is where the arm joins to the shoulder
...
In the leg,
the upper thigh would be the proximal portion of the leg, and the foot would
be the distal portion of the leg
...
Ipsilateral
pertains to one side, whereas mediolateral is a directional term meaning pertaining to the middle and one side (such as right mediolateral pain)
...
Here’s one use of mediolateral:
A right mediolateral abdominal incision would be an incision beginning at the
middle of the abdomen and going toward the right side
...
A lateromedial incision would be the same as a mediolateral one, but
beginning from the side and going toward the middle
...


Table 10-3

Directional Roots

Root Word

What It Means

Anter/o

Front

Caud/o

Tail or downward

Cephal/o

Head or upward

Dist/o

Away from (distant) the point of origin

Dors/o

Back

Infer/o

Below

Later/o

Side

Medi/o

Middle

Poster/o

Back or behind

Proxim/o

Near to (proximity) the point of origin

Super/o

Above

Ventr/o

Front or belly

101

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Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies

Get in position
Some frequently used anatomic positions
describing body positions are

✓ Genupectoral is kneeling with chest resting
on examining table
...

(Whether a patient is standing or lying face
up, the directional terms are always applied
in the same manner
...

✓ Prone means lying face down
...


✓ Erect is standing position
...
Your body can be
defined in several different ways, from groups and regions to cavities and
planes
...
To illustrate all that’s involved
with a body region, take a closer look at two major regions: the abdominal
and spinal
...

Starting with the diaphragm, which is the muscle separating the thoracic
cavity from the abdominal cavity, down to the level of the pelvis or groin, the
abdominal area is divided into nine equal regions
...
The
center portion is the umbilical region, the region of the navel or the umbilicus
...

Directly below the umbilical region is the hypogastric region
...
To the right and left of the umbilical region are the right and left
lumbar regions
...


Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body


The anatomical divisions of the abdomen are referenced in anatomy textbooks
to specify where certain organs are found
...
The clinical regions of the abdomen divide the
abdominal area, as above, into four equal quadrants:



✓ The right upper quadrant (RUQ) contains the right lobe of the liver, gallbladder, and parts of the small and large intestines
...




✓ The right lower quadrant (RLQ) contains parts of the small and large
intestines, appendix, right ureter, right ovary, and fallopian tube
...

Table 10-4 provides a quick look at some of the smaller body regions, beginning at the head and moving downward
...
Note the difference between the spinal column (the vertebrae) and the
spinal cord (the nerves running through the column)
...

The spinal column is divided into five regions
...

There are seven cervical vertebrae, C1 to C7
...
There are 12 thoracic or dorsal vertebrae, T1 to T12, or D1
to D12
...




✓ The lumbar region (abbreviation L) is located at the loin or the flank
area between the ribs and the hip bone
...




✓ The sacral region (abbreviation S) has five bones, S1 to S5, that are
fused to form one bone, the sacrum
...

Figures 10-1 through 10-3 illustrate the body’s anatomical positions and
regions, planes, and cavities
...
They provide a road map to the body
...


Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body

Figure 10-1:
Anatomical
positions
and regions
of the body
...






Illustration by Kathryn Born

Chapter 10: An Org Chart to Live By: Organization of the Body

Figure 10-3:
The body’s
cavities
...
When they all do their own
individual jobs, they have a better chance of working together in harmony
...


Anatomical Systems Working Together
Everything starts with anatomy
...
Coupled
with physiology (which we cover later), a bit of studying your basic anatomical building blocks will help you identify and create tons of medical terms
...
Parts III and IV of this book cover these systems in detail,
but to whet your appetite let’s do a quick preview of the systems of the body
...

The bones of the skeleton have tons of jobs
...


110

Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies
Bones store minerals necessary for growth, and red bone marrow makes blood
cells
...



Bones are attached to other bones by ligaments, whereas tendons connect
bones to muscles
...

Muscles attach to bone, not only making movement possible but holding the
bones of the skeleton together
...
But think about some other functions of muscles
...

Cardiac muscle keeps your heart beating, but the cardiac muscle is involuntary
...

Muscle contraction throughout the body keeps the blood flow moving
...
And
don’t forget the muscles that keep the bladder and colon closed up — until
you voluntarily relax these muscles when you want
...
The skin is actually the body’s largest organ (yes, it is an
organ!)
...
Skin (obviously) provides an external covering for the
body
...

The skin provides a protective barrier against bacteria, pathogens, and
toxins that want to invade your body
...
Sebaceous glands secrete oil to lubricate, whereas sudoriferous glands secrete sweat, acting as a cooling system
...
The blood vessels in the skin aid in regulating body
temperature
...
They act as the body’s
external perception/alarm system by letting in light and sound
...
In these lobes of the
brain, nerve impulses are translated into sound sensations and visual images
that we experience as vision and hearing
...
Presbyopia is impaired vision due
to aging
...


Physiology Systems Working Together
Physiology is the study of the function or day-to-day operation of the parts
of the body
...
You might think
that each body part has one function to carry out and works independently
on its own to accomplish this function, but in fact, most body parts are team
players that work together to accomplish a task
...
You know that the heart pumps blood through the body via
arteries and veins, which are part of the cardiovascular system
...



Pathology (sometimes pathophysiology) is the study of the effects of disease on
body parts and the ways disease can interfere with an organ or system’s functioning ability
...
Blood carries oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and lymph fluid to
cells and transports waste products, carbon dioxide, and urea away to be
excreted
...
The heart is divided
into four chambers: two upper chambers (the right atrium and left atrium
(plural: atria) and two lower chambers, the right and left ventricles
...

Not to be forgotten as a team player with the cardiovascular system is the
lymphatic system
...

It looks after the body’s immune system
...
This system produces lymphocytes, the disease-fighting cells that circulate the body through blood
...
Lymph nodes
can trap and filter toxic and malignant substances
...


111

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Part II: Mapping Words and Bodies

A fantastic voyage
Freshly oxygenated blood is pumped from the
left ventricle through the aorta (the largest
artery) into arteries that decrease in size to arterioles and to capillaries, the smallest branches
of the venous system, where the exchange of
gases takes place
...
The oxygen-depleted blood is carried
via venules (small veins) through veins, to the
superior and inferior venae cavae, the body’s
largest veins, back to the heart, where it is
received in the right atrium
...
The blood travels through a vast

network of vessels once again, this time through
capillaries that wind around the alveoli (the air
sacs of the lung), where the lungs perform the
function of re-oxygenating the blood, getting it
ready for its next trip around the body
...
This freshly oxygenated blood then
comes back to the heart and is received in the
left atrium, then on to the left ventricle, where
it is pumped through the aorta to begin the trip
all over again
...
The spleen stores red blood cells, which can be released
into the body as needed
...
The tonsils are also made up of lymphatic tissue and act as a
filter system for bacteria
...

You can’t live without it, and, as with the other systems, improper functioning would render you dead! Now that would really ruin your day
...
Inhaling and exhaling, the movement of air in and
out of the lungs (ventilation) allows the body to maintain its oxygen requirements for body cells and tissue to survive
...
This
system also metabolizes oxygen, resulting in carbon dioxide production in
body cells
...


Chapter 11: All Systems Go: When Systems Combine

You’ve got connections
The hypopharynx is a common passageway for
both food and air to travel to their final destinations
...
The trachea (windpipe)
connects the larynx to a right and left bronchus, just above the lungs
...


These grapelike sacs are called alveoli, of
which there are approximately 300 million in
healthy lungs, surrounded in capillaries
...
Carbon dioxide
moves from the capillaries into the alveoli to be
expelled by the lungs
...
You don’t have to consciously think about breathing
...
The diaphragm, a large muscle separating the chest cavity from the
abdominal cavity, pushes down and the ribs move up to give the lungs lots
of room to expand
...

When you breathe out (expiration), the diaphragm moves up, the rib cage
comes down, lung pressure increases, and air is pushed out
...
The pleural cavity surrounds the lungs, and the mediastinal cavity between the lungs holds the heart, trachea, and esophagus
...
The cavities are the
pleural and mediastinum, but when referring to the area in general you should
say mediastinal cavity, even though the area is referred to as the mediastinum
...
Except for the processes of swallowing food and
having a bowel movement, this system pretty much looks after itself for
everything that happens in between
...
The stomach partially digests the food before it moves
on to the small intestine (also called small bowel) for further digestion and
absorption
...
Except for the pharynx
(throat) and esophagus, all gastrointestinal organs are in the abdominal
cavity, often referred to as the gut or belly
...
The pancreas (also part of the endocrine
system) secretes enzymes necessary for digestion
...
It metabolizes proteins,
fats, and carbohydrates
...
The gallbladder stores bile that also aids the digestive process
...
In
addition to their regular system functions, they also produce hormones
...
All the while, the muscular system provides the peristalsis, wavelike contractions of muscle throughout this long tract of passageways, that propel the food onward and outward
...
Food poisoning is a perfect example, but let’s not forget gastroenteritis (inflammation of stomach and intestines), vomiting, and everyone’s
favorite, diarrhea
...
It works
in conjunction with the nervous system to regulate body systems
...
The nervous system controls the endocrine system’s
release of hormones, and hormones control the metabolic function in the
body
...
It works together with the hypothalamus gland to aid homeostasis
and body functions such as growth, salt and water balance, reproduction,
and metabolism
...

Glands that make up this system include the thyroid, parathyroids, adrenals,
and pineal
...
The pancreas (also a part of
the digestive system) also produces hormones
...
In addition to their regular system functions, they also produce
hormones
...
The parathyroid glands secrete a hormone that moves the storage of calcium from bone into the blood (to maintain adequate levels of calcium in the bloodstream)
...
The cortex
secretes steroids and mineral corticoids, which are essential to life because
they regulate the levels of mineral salts, or electrolytes
...
These include mineralocorticoids, which regulate potassium, sodium and chloride (electrolytes) and
glucocorticoids (which includes cortisol) that aids in metabolism of carbohydrates, fat and proteins (tissues release glucose to raise blood sugar
levels when needed)
...

The pancreas has specialized cells called the islets of Langerhans
...
Insulin is necessary in the blood so sugar can pass
from the blood into cells
...

The endocrine glands all play a part in this large orchestra to maintain the
harmonious music of the body
...


The three little systems
The central nervous system includes the
brain and spinal cord
...
Impulses are sent to and
from the brain via a vast network of nerves
...
This autonomic system also contains
sympathetic nerves that stimulate the body
when under stress or in a crisis, to increase
blood pressure and heart rate
...

More than 10 billion nerve cells function constantly to organize and coordinate the activities of the body
...
We speak, move muscles, hear, taste, see, and think
...
These
enormous tasks represent just a small number of functions controlled by
the nervous system
...
When the body is stressed
due to infection, pain, or not enough oxygen, body cells are not at their best
and don’t function as well as they should
...
The hypothalamus, located in
the brain, maintains homeostasis by initiating the release of hormones when
needed
...



✓ The brain’s largest part is the cerebrum
...




✓ The cerebellum, or “hind brain,” assists in coordinating voluntary body
movement and helps maintain body balance
...




✓ The medulla oblongata regulates the centers that control respiration,
heart rate, and the respiratory system
...
The cord conducts nerve impulses to and
from the brain
...
It is the body’s control
center, and the spinal cord with its nerve network is the body’s communication system
...
Urine is liquid waste filtered from the blood, collected in the tubules
of the kidneys, and passed along to the renal pelvis, the central collecting

Chapter 11: All Systems Go: When Systems Combine
portion of each of two kidneys, down each ureter (we each have two) to the
urinary bladder, which is, of course, the holding tank
...

Much of this system also looks after itself automatically
...
The muscular system involves the
sphincter that we control to open to release urine from the body
...
Kidneys help maintain the proper balance of
salt and water content in the blood as well as maintain the proper acid-base
balance in the blood
...
Once again, this is
an example of multiple systems working together to accomplish an important task
...
The urethra passes through
the prostate as its connection to the male reproductive system
...



During ejaculation, seminal fluid passes through the urethra, so the urethra
serves two purposes in the male
...

The reproductive systems have one purpose: to secrete hormones (accomplished through the endocrine system) in order to have the ability to reproduce
...

The female system consists of the ovaries (the gonads) that produce the
hormones estrogen and progesterone
...
The uterus is a
muscular, very expandable organ that provides a safe place for a pregnancy
to grow to maturity (40 weeks)
...
Actually, fertilization of a sperm and an ovum takes place in the
fallopian tube and then travels to the uterus to grow
...
When conception does not occur, the
lining of the uterus is expelled as a menstrual period
...




The breasts are considered part of the reproductive system because they are
the glands that begin producing milk following delivery
...
It is in the testes or testicles, which are
held in the scrotum, that the hormone testosterone is produced, as well as
spermatozoa, which are stored in the epididymis
...
During intercourse, it is all
deposited into the vagina
...
dummies
...


In this part 
...
This
system, along with its joints, works together with the muscles to give
your body the support it needs to function
...
This
framework protects vital organs from external injury and provides attachment points for muscles, ligaments, and tendons to make body movement
possible
...
Muscles are connected
to bones by tendons, which are located at each end of a muscle because a
muscle needs to be attached to two bones to make movement possible
...


How the Skeletal System Works
Although bones, muscles, joints, ligaments, and tendons all work together,
they each have a special job
...

Bones store mineral salts, and the inner core of a bone is composed of hematopoietic (blood cell–forming) red bone marrow
...
And you thought bones just gave your body its shape
...
Talk about double duty!

122

Part III: In Terms of Anatomy
Figure 12-1 shows the human skeleton
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born



Red bone marrow is red because red blood cells form in it
...
Bones are
complete organs, chiefly made up of connective tissue called osseous or bony
tissue plus a rich supply of blood vessels and nerves
...
Andrew Colles, an Irish surgeon in 1814
...
But you don’t have to be Irish to sustain
one
...


Bones and osteology
Now it’s time to get down with osteology
...

Osteology is the study of bones
...
So, osteo is the focus in this chapter
...

Bones are classified by their shape — long, short, flat, irregular, and sesamoid
...




✓ Short bones are found in the wrists and ankles and have small, irregular
shapes
...
The shoulder blades,
ribs, and pelvic bones are examples of flat bones
...




✓ Sesamoid bones are small, rounded bones found near joints
...

There’s more to bones than the hard, white substance you think of when you
envision one
...
Each end of a long bone is called the epiphysis
...
The periosteum of the bone is a
strong, fibrous membrane that covers the surface, except at the ends
...




Fractures are often classified by a system called the Salter-Harris system, which
identifies whether a fracture involves only the physis, or could involve the
epiphysis and/or the diaphysis as well
...

Beneath the periosteum is a level of osteoblasts, which deposit calcium and
phosphorus compounds in the bony tissue
...
This cartilage layer cushions the bones where they meet
with other bones, or at the joints
...
Within the compact bone is a system
of small channels containing blood vessels that bring oxygen and nutrients to
the bone and remove waste products such as carbon dioxide
...
Spaces in cancellous bone contain red bone
marrow, which is richly supplied with blood and consists of immature and
mature blood cells in various stages of development
...
Figure 12-1
illustrates the skeleton
...
The bones
that make up this particular part of the skeleton tend to encircle important
organs or rotate in an axial motion
...


Cranium
The bones of the cranium (skull) protect the brain
...
The parietal bone forms the roof and upper sides of the
skull
...
The mastoid process is a small round part of the temporal bone behind the ear
...
The
occipital bone has an opening called the foramen magnum through which the
spinal cord passes
...
It joins the frontal, occipital, and ethmoid bones
and serves as an anchor to hold these bones together
...



Be careful when working with a newborn cranium, as the cranial bones of a
newborn are not completely joined
...
The lines where the bones of the skull join are called cranial sutures
...


Facial bones
All the facial bones except one are joined together
...

Other facial bones include the nasal bones, and the maxillary bones
...
Both the mandible and maxilla contain sockets

Chapter 12: Boning Up on the Skeletal System
called alveoli, in which the teeth are embedded
...
The
zygoma or zygomatic bones form the cheek
...


Vertebral column
The vertebral column, or spinal column, is composed of 26 bone segments
called vertebrae (singular vertebra), which are arranged in five divisions: cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacrum, and coccyx (tailbone)
...
These vertebrae do not join with the ribs
...

It supports the head and allows it to move forward and back
...

The second division consists of 12 thoracic vertebrae (T1-T12)
...
The third division consists of five lumbar
vertebrae (L1-L5)
...
The
sacrum is a slightly curved triangular bone, composed of five separate segments, or sacral bones, that gradually become fused
...
It is also a fused bone, formed from four small coccygeal bones
...
” An example is the lumbar disk
...

A vertebra is composed of a disk-shaped portion called the vertebral body,
which is the solid anterior portion (closest to body front, farthest from the
body back)
...

Spinous processes, thoracic processes, and transverse processes are little winglike projections that project or extend from each vertebra
...

Between the body of one vertebra and the bodies of vertebrae lying beneath
are vertebral disks, which help to provide flexibility and cushion shock to the
vertebral column
...
Seuss) starts
with the clavicle, or the collarbone, connecting the sternum (breastbone) to
each shoulder
...
The scapulae extend to join
with the clavicle at the acromion
...
The uppermost part of the sternum joins to the sides of the clavicle
and ribs, whereas the other, narrowed portion is attached to the diaphragm
...
This is the thing you would feel for when
placing your hands on a chest to perform CPR
...
The first seven pairs join the sternum anteriorly
(at the chest) by attachments of costal cartilage
...

Ribs 8–12 are called false ribs
...

Ribs 11 and 12 are called floating ribs because they are completely free at their
anterior end
...
The adult pelvic
bone is composed of three pairs of fused bone: the ilium, the ischium, and the
pubis
...
The connection between the
iliac bones and the sacrum is so firm that they are often referred to as one
bone, the sacroiliac
...
They are filled with red bone marrow and serve as
an attachment for abdominal wall muscles
...
The ischium and the muscles attached to it are what we sit on
...
This area of fusion is called the pubic symphysis
...
The rectum, sigmoid
colon, bladder, and female reproductive organs are contained in this cavity
...
Your reachers, grabbers, and hoofers are all covered in this section
...


Upper extremities
Arms and hands are part of this category
...
The large head of the humerus is
round and joins the scapula and clavicle
...
The bony prominence of the ulna at the elbow
is called the olecranon
...
Finally, there are two rows of
four bones
...
Phalanges
(the singular is phalanx) are the finger bones
...
The proximal is the phalange closest to the point of origin, whereas the distal is farthest from the point of origin
...

The thumb has only two phalanges: medial and distal at tip of the thumb,
which is why it is categorized differently than the rest of your fingers
...
”
Diaphysis is the shaft of long bones that grows as children grow
...
At the top end of it, a rounded head fits into a
socket in the hip bone called the acetabulum
...
The tibia is the larger of the two lower bones
of the leg, often referred to as the shin bone
...

The tarsals, or ankle bones, are short bones that are much like the carpal
bones of the wrist, but larger
...
Metatarsals compose the forefoot or bones
leading to the phalanges in the toes
...
Just like the fingers, all
the bones in the toes are phalanges, from proximal to distal
...



The femur is the longest bone in the body
...
Okay, joints
aren’t really made of glue, but they sure do a good job of keeping everything
connected
...
Some are not movable, such as the suture joints between the cranial bones
...

Most joints do allow movement
...
An example is the ball and socket type — the hip joint, for example, in which the head of the femur fits into the acetabulum
...


127

128

Part III: In Terms of Anatomy
The bones of a synovial joint are separated by a capsule, composed of fibrous
cartilage
...
The bone surfaces at a joint are covered with a
smooth surface called the articular cartilage
...

The synovial cavity is filled with a lubricating fluid produced by synovial
membranes
...

Bursae (singular bursa) are closed sacs of synovial fluid lined with synovial
membrane
...
The olecranon bursa at the elbow joint and the patellar bursa at the
knee are examples of bursae
...
The roots, as always, are
essential medical terminology knowledge because once you master these
roots (those good ol’ Greek and Latin ones, that is), you can break down any
skeletal-related word and discover its meaning
...


Table 12-1

Digging Up Your Skeletal Roots

Root Word

What It Means

Kyph/o

Humpback (posterior curvature of thoracic spine)

Lamin/o

Lamina (part of the vertebral arch)

Lord/o

Curve or swayback (lordosis: anterior curvature in lumbar spine)

Lumb/o

Lower back, lumbar region

Myel/o

Bone marrow

Oste/o

Bone

Orth/o

Straight

Scoli/o

Crooked, bent (scoliosis: lateral curvature of spine)

Spondyl/o

Vertebra (referring to conditions of the structure)

Vertebr/o

Vertebra (referring to or describing the structure)

Chapter 12: Boning Up on the Skeletal System
Table 12-2 lists the combining forms used with bones
...


Table 12-3

Joint-Related Combining Forms

Combining Form

What It Means

Arthr/o

Joint

Articul/o

Joint

Burs/o

Bursa

Chondr/o

Cartilage

Disk/o

Intervertebral disk

Fibros/o

Fibrous

Menisc/o

Meniscus

Synovi/o

Synovium

Ten/o, tend/o, tendin/o

Tendon

More Anatomical Terms
Although the makeup of the skeletal system is pretty straightforward, there
are still more useful terms you need to know in order to communicate about
’dem bones
...


Table 12-4

More Common Skeletal Vocabulary

Word

What It Means

Ankylosis

Stiffness of a joint

Arthralgia

Pain in the joint

Articulation

Joint

Bradykinesia

Slow movement

Bursa

Sac of fluid at or around a joint

Calcium

One of the mineral constituents of bone

Cancellous bone

Spongy porous bone tissue

Chiropodist

Specialist in diagnosing and treating foot disorders

Chiropractics

System of therapy that consists of manipulation of the
bones and joints of the entire body

Chiropractor

Specialist in chiropractics

Chondromalacia

Softening of cartilage

Chapter 12: Boning Up on the Skeletal System
Word

What It Means

Compact bone

Hard, dense bone tissuelation

Condyle

Knucklelike process at the end of a bone — near a joint

Diaphysis

Shaft or midportion of a long bone

Dyskinesia

Difficult movement

Dystrophy

Abnormal development

Epiphysis

End of a long bone

Fissure

Narrow slitlike opening between bones

Fontanelle

Soft spot, incomplete closure of infant’s skull sutures

Fossa

Depression or cavity in a bone

Hematopoiesis

Development of blood cells in bone marrow

Hyperkinesia

Excessive movement or overactivity

Intercostal

Between the ribs

Intracranial

Within the cranium

Kyphosis

Abnormal hump of thoracic spine, “hunchback”

Ligament

Connective tissue binding bones to other bones

Mastoid process

Round projection on the temporal bone behind the ear

Orthopedics

Branch of medicine dealing with the study and treatment of
diseases and abnormalities of the skeletal system

Orthopedist

Physician specializing in orthopedics

Orthotics

Making and fitting of orthopedic appliances such as arch
supports, used to support, align, or correct deformities

Osseous tissue

Bone tissue

Ossification

Process of bone formation

Osteoblast

A bone cell that helps form bone tissue

Osteoclast

A bone cell that absorbs and removes unwanted bone
tissue

Osteopath

Physician who specializes in osteopathy

Osteopathy

Branch of medicine using the usual forms of diagnosis of
treatment but with emphasis on the role of the relationship
between the body organs and the skeletal system, and performing manipulations in order to decrease pain and help
body function
...
Many of the most common maladies
associated with the skeletal system involve the application of casts or other
corrective devices
...
Whether a result of an auto accident
or just plain clumsiness (come on, like you didn’t see that curb jump out at
you!), any bone in your body is a potential break waiting to happen
...



✓ Bunion is an abnormal prominence with bursal swelling at the metatarsophalangeal joint near the base of the big toe
...
Tennis elbow is an example of
bursitis of the olecranon bursa
...
Dislocations may
be reduced or restored to their normal condition and the joint immobilized with sling or strapping for healing of torn ligaments and tendons
...


Chapter 12: Boning Up on the Skeletal System

Break it to me gently, Doc
Don’t think every fracture is a run-of-the-mill
break
...
Here’s a sampling from the
fracture menu:
✓ Closed fracture: Bone is broken with no
open wound in the skin
...

✓ Compression fracture: Bone is pushed in on
itself; commonly occurs in the vertebrae
...
Often occurs in children
...

Treatment of fractures includes reduction,
restoring the fracture to its normal position
...

✓ Open reduction features making an incision
into the skin to gain access to the fracture
site and then restoring normal position
...


✓ Impacted fracture: Bone is broken with one
end wedged into the other
...
This is commonly referred to as a herniated disk or slipped disk
...

Talipes, also known as clubfoot, is a congenital deformity of the bones of
the foot
...
Exostoses are bony
growths (benign tumors) on the surface of a bone
...
Speaking
of old, this condition is not limited to seniors
...
This condition responds to corticosteroids and
anti-inflammatory therapy
...
An inherited defect in metabolism causes excessive
uric acid to accumulate in the blood, joints, and soft tissues near the
joints
...


133

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy


✓ Osteoarthritis, also called degenerative joint disease or degenerative
arthritis, is chronic inflammation of bones and joints due to degenerative changes in the cartilage related to overuse This occurs mainly in
the hips and legs
...




✓ Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic disease characterized by inflammation
of the skin (psoriasis) and joints (arthritis)
...




✓ Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disease where joints
become inflamed and painful
...


Finding the Culprit: Skeletal
Diseases and Pathology
Some conditions affecting the skeletal system are more complicated and are considered pathological, meaning the result of, or marker for, systemwide disease
...
Osteoporosis may occur as part of the aging process
or due to corticosteroid therapy, but can be diagnosed and treated
...
The former is an inflammation of the bone and bone marrow due to
infection
...
Infection occurs
in the long bones of the arm and leg, which can lead to an abscess and, if the
bone dies, a sequestrum (a segment of dead bone) may develop
...
Similarly, Ewing’s tumor is a highly
malignant metastasizing tumor (Ewing’s sarcoma) involving the entire shaft
of a long bone
...

Paget’s disease is a skeletal disease often hereditary in older persons — bone
resorption and formation are increased, leading to thickening and softening
of bones, causing bending of weight-bearing bones
...

Inflammation is not just for muscles and soft tissues
...
Rickets is characterized by osteomalacia, or softening of
bone
...
Bones become soft
and bend easily
...


Testing, Testing: Skeletal Radiology
and Diagnostic Tests
X-rays of bones and joints are common procedures to identify fractures or
tumors, to monitor healing of a fracture, and to identify abnormal structures
...
Terminology: Skeletal
Surgeries and Procedures
Both bones and joints can be repaired with surgery
...
Types of arthroplasties include:

135

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy


✓ Total hip replacement arthroplasty is performed for degenerative joint
disease or arthritis
...




✓ Total knee joint replacement arthroplasty is performed to replace worn
surfaces of the knee joint
...




✓ Unicompartmental hip/knee resurfacing is performed when only one
area of the knee or hip is damaged
...




✓ Core decompression is performed by coring out a defective or diseased
area of bone, with repair by filling the cored area with a bone graft
...




Remember the root arthro when discussing joints
...




The lone exception to the arthro rule is synovectomy, which is the excision of
the synovial membrane of a joint
...
A craniotomy, an incision
into the skull, allows access to the brain for surgery
...
On the other hand, a percutaneous diskectomy
is a procedure that uses fluoroscopy to guide insertion of a Nucleotome into
a spinal disk, to remove the thick, sticky nucleus of the disk
...
This allows the disk to soften
and contract, relieving the lower back and leg pain
...
A lamina is a part of the posterior
(back) portion of a vertebra
...
Antiresorptive
medications (drugs that prevent bone breakdown) and anabolic therapy for
osteoporotic fracture prevention are also used as treatment management
...
Fixing an arm or leg bone is about more than wrapping it
in a cast
...
The beauty of the muscular
system is that it is, in fact, a system in which different major muscle groups
work together at the same time
...
You’re using
muscles right now reading this book
...
The muscles —
all 600 of them and more — are responsible for movement
...
So, for every
climb of the elliptical machine, you can thank muscular tissue for making it
possible
...
Muscles vary in proportion to body size, and the
shape of the body is determined by muscles covering bones
...
For a moment, think of the muscular
system as a party where people are looking for
a date
...
The tendon is your “wingman” (the
one who makes the introductions to the opposite sex)
...
There are tendons on each end of

skeletal muscles because a muscle needs to
be attached to two bones to make movement
possible
...
Muscles are attached
to a stable bone at the point of origin and to a
moving bone at the point of insertion, and this
allows for movement when a muscle contracts
and relaxes
...


Muscular expanding and contracting doesn’t just happen in your biceps
...
Muscles support and maintain posture and
produce body heat
...
The muscles of arteries,
intestines, heart, and stomach, for example, are always at work even when
we aren’t thinking of them
...

Internal movement involves the contraction and relaxation of involuntary
muscles, muscles that we cannot consciously control
...
Breathing and digestion are facilitated by muscles called visceral (involuntary) muscles, whereas external
movement is accomplished by contraction and relaxation of muscles that
are attached to bones
...



All bodily movement, whether lifting of an arm, or the beating of the heart,
involves the contraction and relaxation of voluntary or involuntary muscles
...
There are three classes of muscles: skeletal, visceral, and cardiac
...
Its contraction produces the heartbeat
...
They are called voluntary, of course, because they are controlled by your will
...




✓ Visceral (involuntary smooth) muscle is found in the stomach, intestines, and blood vessels, and cannot be controlled at will
...
And even if it stops beating, it can be
jump-started with an external electrical charge
...


Types of muscles
Oh, if it were only that easy
...
At first
glance, the types of muscles are the same as the classes of muscle
...
There are three
types of muscles in the body
...
These are the
muscles that move all the bones, as well as the face and the eyes
...


Smooth muscle
The second type of muscle is smooth muscle, also known as visceral, involuntary or unstriated muscle
...
The
smooth muscles are also found in blood vessels and secretory ducts leading
from glands
...


Cardiac muscles
The third type of muscle is cardiac muscle
...
Movement of cardiac muscle cannot
be consciously controlled
...


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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy

Tell me more: Describing muscles
Oh sure, you could use good old, standard
English adjectives to describe muscles and
their characteristics, but why not have some
fun? Try these descriptives on for size:

✓ Orbicularis: Surrounding

✓ Gracilis: Slender

✓ Transversus: Crosswise

✓ Latissimus: Wide

✓ Vastus: Great, big

✓ Rectus: Straight
✓ Serratus: Sawtoothed

✓ Longus: Long

Muscles and tendons
Now that you know the classes and types of muscles, let’s take a more indepth look at how they work
...
Now get
ready for the scoop on what makes it possible
...
The point of attachment of the
muscle to the stationary bone is called the origin or beginning of that muscle
...

The junction of the muscle to the bone that moves is called the insertion of
the muscle
...
One type of tendon that helps attach bone to muscles is called an aponeurosis
...
Take, for example, your superficial muscles, so named because these are the ones you’re most likely to see
with the naked eye
...
Though they all have complicated-sounding names, they help your
body perform everyday functions like picking up objects and smiling
...


Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System

Figure 13-1:
Posterior
view of the
neck and
shoulder
muscles
...
In the forearm (lower arm) are the flexor and extensor
muscles of the hands and fingers
...




✓ Shoulder and neck muscles include the sternocleidomastoid, pectoralis major, latissimus dorsi, and trapezius muscle, leading to the deltoid
muscle of the shoulder
...
Also associated with this region is the linea alba
...




✓ The major muscles of the back include the seventh cervical vertebral
muscle, infraspinatus, supraspinatus, latissimus dorsi, and the rhomboid
major muscle
...






Illustration by Kathryn Born

Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System

Figure 13-3:
The muscles
of the upper
limb, anterior
(A) and posterior (B)
...
Many muscles, tendons, and ligaments have the same name
but don’t have the same function
...




✓ The pelvis and anterior thigh muscles include the tensor fascia lata, the
adductors of the thigh, the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis, the rectus
femoris, and the quadriceps
...
By the way, things
aren’t always what they seem: The Achilles tendon is technically classified as a muscle
...
In the thigh are the adductor magnus, vastus
lateralis, gracilis, whereas the biceps femoris, semitendinosus and
semimembranosus combined comprise the hamstrings
...






Illustration by Kathryn Born

Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System
So, the moral of our muscle story is teamwork
...
Muscles cannot move alone, without being
attached to stationary bones to allow support for that movement
...
Body movement then, is made possible by the bones
and skeletal muscles working together in addition to the visceral and cardiac
muscles that function to maintain the muscular rhythm of our vital organs
...


Muscular Roots and Suffixes
Let’s put your newfound expertise into practice by breaking down the root
words into meanings and useful applications
...



Don’t confuse myo (muscle) with myelo (bone marrow)
...


Table 13-1

Breaking Down Your Muscular Roots

Root Word

What It Means

Duct/o

To draw

Fasci/o

Fascia (band of tissue surrounding muscle)

Fibr/o

Fibers

Flex/o

Bend

Leiomy/o

Smooth visceral muscle

My/o

Muscle

Myocardi/o

Heart muscle

Myos/o

Muscle

Pronati/o

Facing down or backward

Rhabdomy/o

Skeletal or striated muscle

Sarc/o

Soft, fleshy, or connective tissue

Supinati/o

Facing up or forward

Tens/o

Stretch

147

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy

Unofficialoma
Unofficial but not uncommon slang includes
incidentaloma, which refers to something found
in a study, which is not particularly important or
else not relevant to the study at hand, but still

Table 13-2

worth noting
...
”

Muscular Suffixes

Suffix

What It Means

-algia

Pain in fibrous tissue

-desis

Surgical fixation

-dynia

Pain

-ectomy

Surgical removal or excision

-gram

Record

-graph

Instrument used to record

-graphy

The process of recording

-itis

Inflammation

-ology

Study of, process of study

-oma

Tumor or mass

-otomy

To cut into

-pathy

Disease

-plasty

Surgical reconstruction, or shaping of

-rrhaphy

Suture repair

Action Item: The Movement
of Your Muscles
Your muscles do a serious amount of work every single hour of every day
...
Turns out, for every muscular action, luckily for you, there is a word
to describe it
...


Common Muscular Conditions
Muscular conditions are fairly common in people of all ages and backgrounds
...
Here are the most common muscular conditions:


✓ Bursitis: Inflammation of the bursa sac, which lines the joint and provides smooth joint movement



✓ Fibromyalgia: Pain in fibrous tissues of muscles, tendons, or ligaments



✓ Myoparalysis: Paralysis of a muscle



✓ Myotonia: Muscles react slowly after contraction or stimulation



✓ Polymyositis: Inflammation of “many muscles”



✓ Tendinitis or tendonitis: Inflammation of a tendon



✓ Tendinopathy: Any disease involving a tendon



✓ Tennis elbow: The tendon that connects the arm muscle to elbow
becomes inflamed due to the repetitive use of the arm

The actual medical term for this is lateral or medial epicondylitis (lateral
if referring to the bump on the outside of the elbow, medial to the bump
on the inside)
...
From diseases
that affect facial movement to the full-body atrophy of Lou Gehrig’s disease,
these diseases are all challenging:


✓ Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): Movement disorder or muscle
atrophy with degeneration of nerves in the spinal cord and lower region
of the brain, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease
...




✓ Isaacs Syndrome: Progressive muscle stiffness and spasm



✓ Leiomyoma: Benign tumor of smooth muscle



✓ Leiomyosarcoma: Malignant tumor of smooth muscle



✓ Mitochondrial myopathy: Mitochondria, the power units of cells, are
damaged, causing muscle weakness



✓ Myasthenia gravis: Lack of muscle strength with paralysis, characterized by weakness of muscles of the face and jaw, with difficulty
swallowing



✓ Myofascial pain syndrome: Chronic disorder affecting one or more
muscle groups



✓ Myosarcoma: Malignant tumor of muscle tissue



✓ Myositis ossificans progressiva: Progressive disease that begins in early
life in which muscles gradually convert into bony tissue



✓ Muscular dystrophy: Inherited disease characterized by progressive
weakness and degeneration of muscle fibers without involvement of the
nervous system



✓ Polymyalgia rheumatica: Muscle pain, common in shoulder or pelvis,
without arthritis or signs of muscle distress



✓ Rotator cuff disease: Inflammation of tendons and muscles in the shoulder; if they fuse you have a larger problem, a condition called frozen
shoulder or adhesive capsulitis



✓ Torticollis: Acute myositis of the cervical muscles (wryneck)

Chapter 13: Getting Ripped: The Muscular System

Testing, Testing: Muscular Radiology
and Diagnostic Tests
Though the list of muscular conditions and diseases is quite long, there are
some simple diagnostic tests doctors can perform to diagnose most muscular
ailments
...

This procedure is done to diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome
...




✓ Isokinetic dynamometry: A test to measuring the degree of muscular
power using an instrument called a dynamometer
...




✓ X-ray: Picture of the bones
...
Terminology: Muscular
Surgeries and Procedures
Now that your muscles have been poked, prodded, tested, and diagnosed, it’s
time to fix what’s broken
...



Many surgeries are performed arthroscopically, through a scope inserted into
or near a joint space, with one lone endoscope, Palmar uniportal endoscopic
carpal tunnel release
...

The surgical players are



✓ Fasciectomy: Excision of fascia (fibrous band or membrane of tissue surrounding muscle)



✓ Fasciodesis: Surgical fusion or binding of muscle fascia



✓ Fasciotomy: Surgical cutting into muscle fascia



✓ Myolysis: Surgical breaking down or separation of a muscle



✓ Myoplasty: Surgical repair of a muscle



✓ Myorrhaphy: Suturing of a muscle



✓ Tenodesis: Surgical fixation of a tendon

151

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy


✓ Tenomyoplasty: Surgical repair of a tendon and muscle



✓ Tenorrhaphy: Suturing of a tendon



✓ Tenotomy: Incision of a tendon

It’s All Related: More Muscular Terms
While the makeup of the muscular system is pretty straightforward, there
are still all sorts of useful terms you need to know in order to communicate
about your muscles
...


Table 13-3

Common Muscular Vocabulary

Word

What It Means

Articulation

Joint

Atrophy

Without development, wasting away of a muscle

Bradykinesia

Slow body movement

Diathermy

Heat applied to deep tissues

Dyskinesia

Difficult body movement

Dystrophy

Abnormal development

Fascia

Band of tissue surrounding muscle

Fasciitis

Inflammation of fascia

Hyperkinesia

Excessive body movement or overactivity

Kinesiology

The study of movement

Ligament

Binds bone to bone

Myalgia

Muscle pain

Myasthenia

Muscle weakness

Myoclonus

Muscle relaxation and contraction in rapid succession

Myology

The study of muscles

Myopathy

Any muscular disease

Myorrhexis

Rupture or breaking away of muscle tissue

Tendon

Connective tissue binding muscles to bones

Tenodynia

Pain in a tendon

Tenosynovitis

Inflammation of the tendon and synovial membrane

Chapter 14

Skin Deep: Skin, Glands,
Nails, and Hair
In This Chapter
▶ Finding out how your integumentary system works
▶ Determining root words, prefixes, and suffixes appropriate to this system
▶ Using terminology of the integumentary system to discuss common conditions and

diseases

▶ Discovering the right terms to use when diagnosing problems

Y

our skin (the body’s largest organ), glands, nails, and hair — also known
as the integumentary system — serve as the “public face” of your body
...
Healthy skin, along with accessory
organs glands, hair, and nails, are the hallmarks of healthy insides, so care for
them accordingly
...
The skin is a system of specialized tissue,
containing glands that secrete fluids, nerves that carry impulses, and blood
vessels that assist in the regulation of body temperature
...
” This system is the body’s covering, made up
mostly of skin, but with the help of the accessory organs
...
The skin acts as a protective membrane that is a barrier against microorganisms, and it protects organs
from injury
...
The skin helps rid the body
of waste products
...
Secretions from the skin are somewhat acidic in
nature and contribute to its ability to fight off bacterial invasion
...
The many different
tissues in the skin help maintain the body temperature
...
Nerve
impulses cause blood vessels to dilate to bring blood to the surface where
the heat can dissipate and cause sweat glands to produce the watery secretion that evaporates, thereby acting as your cooling system
...
The outer layer is the epidermis, a thin, cellular
membrane layer
...
The third layer is the subcutaneous tissue, fat-containing tissue that
joins the skin to underlying muscle
...
It is stretchable and tough
and has different thicknesses
...
The skin is initially firm and elastic, but
with age, becomes wrinkled, drier, and saggy, especially around the eyes,
mouth, and neck
...
The skin on fingers and toes
has patterns of ridges that never change and are unique for each individual,
and, as you know from crime dramas, provide a basis for the use of fingerprints as a means of positive identification
...
It is composed of epithelium
...

The epidermis has no blood vessels, lymphatic vessels, connective tissue,
cartilage, or fat
...
Oxygen and nutrients from the capillaries in the dermis pass through tissue fluid, supplying nourishment to the
deeper levels of the epidermis
...
Cells in the basal
layer are always growing and multiplying
...
These cells shrink, lose their nuclei, die, and
become filled with a hard protein called keratin
...
Within a three-to-four week
period after living as a basal cell in the deepest part of the epidermis, the
horny keratinized cell is sloughed off from the surface of the skin
...


Chapter 14: Skin Deep: Skin, Glands, Nails, and Hair
Cells die at the same rate at which they are born
...
Melanocytes contain a black
pigment called melanin
...
Darker skin possesses more active melanocytes, not a greater
number of melanocytes
...

Individuals, who through a flaw in their chemical make-up are incapable of
forming melanin, are called albino, meaning white
...


Dermis
The dermis, the second layer, below the epidermis, is also called the corium
...
These accessories include the hair follicles, sweat glands, and oil glands
...
The dermis is composed of different types
of connective tissue cells: fibroblasts, histiocytes, and mast cells
...
Histiocytes protect the body by surrounding foreign materials
...

Fibers in the dermis are composed of collagen
...
It is tough, but also flexible
...
Collagen fibers support
and protect the blood and nerve networks that pass through the dermis
...
When you are frightened or cold, these muscles
contract, the hair stands up, and “goosebumps” appear on the skin
...
Lipocytes, plentiful in the subcutaneous layer,
manufacture and store large amounts of fat
...
This layer of skin is important in protecting
deeper tissues of the body and also acts as a heat insulator
...
Its fat
tissue insulates inner structures from temperature extremes
...
These glands under the skin’s surface are called the sebaceous (oil) glands and the sudoriferous (sweat) glands
...
Sebum
and sweat are carried to the outer edges of the skin by ducts and excreted
through openings in the skin called pores
...

Sebaceous glands are closely associated with hair follicles, and their ducts
open into the hair follicle through which the sebum is released
...
This causes them to be
overactive at puberty and underactive in old age
...

Sudoriferous (sweat) glands are tiny coiled glands found on almost all body surfaces
...
There are many more in
the palms of the hands, and you’d find approximately 3,000 glands per square
inch on the sole of your foot
...

Sweat helps cool the body as it evaporates from the skin surface
...
The adjustment
of the body to its environment depends on the sensory messages relayed to
the brain and spinal cord by the sensitive nerve endings in the skin
...
” Translated, it means “the carrying through of perspiration
...
Your body’s smell is
caused by bacteria
...
Sweat is actually colorless and odorless
...

Certain sweat glands, active only from puberty
onward and larger than ordinary sweat glands,
are concentrated near the reproductive organs

and in the axillae (armpits)
...
The breakdown products are responsible for the characteristic “human body odor
...
My bacteria
are the culprits
...
These glands produce a yellow waxy
substance called cerumen (ear wax)
...




Figure 14-1:
Cross section of the
skin showing layers
and some
specialized
structures
...
Hair growth is similar to the growth of
the epidermal layer of the skin
...
Melanocytes located
at the root of hair follicles supply the melanin pigment for the hair fiber
...
Because hormone production decreases as we get older, the hair loses
color and becomes transparent (which we see as gray)
...
Nails are composed of horny cells that are
cemented together and can extend indefinitely until cut or broken
...
Nails grow approximately 1 millimeter a week,
which means that fingernails may regrow completely in three to five months
...


157

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy

Integumentary Root Words
Now that you’ve gotten to know the specific parts of the integumentary
system a bit better, it’s time to put your expertise into practice by tracking
down the meaning of root words and checking out their useful applications
...

Table 14-1 lists integumentary root words
...
” It is
descriptive of the course and type of skin lesion as with herpes zoster
(shingles)
...


Table 14-2

Common Integumentary Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefix

What It Means

Epi-

On, over, upon

Para-

Beside, beyond, around

Per

Through

Sub-

Under, below

Suffix

What It Means

-itis

Inflammation

-malacia

Softening

-opsy

View of, viewing

-orrhea

Flow, excessive discharge

-phagia

Eating or swallowing

-plasty

Surgical repair

159

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy

Common Integumentary Conditions
Of all the conditions that plague the integumentary system, ones affecting the
skin tend to be the most obvious and troublesome
...
Take a look:


✓ Acne: Inflammatory pustular eruption of skin (acne vulgaris is the
common variety)



✓ Bulla: Large vesicle or blister (plural: bullae), also called a bleb



✓ Carbuncle: A pyogenic (pus) infection of the skin usually arising from a
hair follicle, causing a tender, pus-filled lump



✓ Comedo: Common blackhead caused by a buildup of sebum and keratin
in a skin pore (plural: comedones)



✓ Cyst: Small sac or pouch containing fluid or semisolid fluid



✓ Decubitus ulcer: Bedsore



✓ Fissure: Groove or cracklike sore



✓ Furuncle: Similar to a carbuncle (commonly called a “boil”)



✓ Lichen planus: Common skin disease with eruptions on skin and in
mouth — and affecting appearance of finger and toenails



✓ Macule: A discolored lesion that lies flush with the skin (freckles, tattoo
marks, and moles)



✓ Papule: Solid elevation of the skin



✓ Polyp: Mushroomlike growth extending on a stalk



✓ Pustule: Discrete raised area of pus on the skin



✓ Ulcer: Open sore or erosion of the skin



✓ Vesicle: Collection of clear fluid (blister)



✓ Wheal: Smooth elevated area that is red and itchy (such as hives)
...
A host of conditions affect the entire integumentary system
...
Can result normally from aging process or be drug
or illness induced



✓ Cicatrix: Scar left by a healed wound



✓ Ecchymosis: Purplish macular bruise, caused by hemorrhage into the skin



✓ Keloid: Abnormally raised, thickened scar

Chapter 14: Skin Deep: Skin, Glands, Nails, and Hair


✓ Petechia: Small pinpoint hemorrhage (plural: petechiae)



✓ Pruritus: Itching, associated with forms of dermatitis



✓ Purpura: Merging ecchymoses with petechiae



✓ Urticaria: Hives with localized swelling with itching



✓ Vitiligo: Loss of pigment in area of skin or milk-white patch
Another important one is burn: injury to tissues caused by heat, flame, electricity, chemicals, or radiation contact
...
A second-degree burn, or partial thickness
burn, blisters and causes damage to epidermis and dermis
...


Finding the Culprit: Integumentary
Diseases and Pathology
Once again, the skin is the major player when it comes to ailments
...
These pathological conditions include the
following:


✓ Acne: Inflammatory pustular eruption of skin (acne vulgaris is the
common variety)



✓ Athlete’s foot: Ringworm of the foot (tinea pedis) — a fungal infection
with scaling and itching of the skin of the foot



✓ Cutis laxa: Rare connective tissue disorder — skin becomes very lax and
hangs loosely in folds



✓ Diaper rash: Diaper dermatitis — red, shiny rash not caused by the
diaper but by what is collected in the diaper (feces)



✓ Ecthyma: Ulcerative skin condition caused by bacteria, often from an
insect bite



✓ Eczema: Inflammatory skin disease with reddened papular lesions; a
common allergic reaction in children



✓ Erysipelas: Acute infection of upper dermis usually caused by streptococcus bacteria (Greek — erisipeles — “red skin”)



✓ Gangrene: Death of tissue associated with loss of blood supply



✓ Ichthyosis vulgaris: Disorder of the skin causing dry, scaly skin; usually
inherited



✓ Impetigo: Bacterial inflammatory skin disease presenting with vesicles,
pustules, and crusted lesions; caused by bacteria

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✓ Melasma: “Mask of pregnancy” tan or dark skin discoloration, hormonerelated condition causing stimulation of melanocytes



✓ Necrotizing Fasciitis: Rare infection of the deep layers of the skin (also
known as “flesh-eating disease”)



✓ Pemphigoid: Rare autoimmune skin blistering disease, most common in
women over 60



✓ Pityriasis Rosea: Common benign skin rash that is uncomfortable and
lasts from six to eight weeks, not fungal and not allergenic



✓ Psoriasis: Chronic (ongoing) skin ailment with silver-gray scales covering red patches



✓ Rosacea: Chronic vascular dilatation of skin on nose and cheeks with
papules and pustules



✓ Roseola: (exanthema subitum) Sudden rash (also called rose rash of
infants); also known as sixth disease because it is the sixth rash-causing
childhood disease



✓ Scabies: (known as the seven-year itch) Contagious skin infection
caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei burrowing under the skin



✓ Scleroderma: Disorder affecting all connective tissue that causes abnormal tissue thickening usually on fingers, hands, or face



✓ Telangiectasis: Dilatation of small capillaries on the skin



✓ Tinea: Infection of the skin caused by a fungus (ringworm)



Scabies is a very common skin disorder, especially in children
...
5 percent of the world’s population
...
These include



✓ Molluscum contagiosum: “Water warts”



✓ Rubella: German measles



✓ Rubeola: Measles



✓ Varicella: Chickenpox
Sometimes, the skin experiences skin neoplasms, also known as “new
growth
...




✓ Verruca: Warts
Unfortunately, the news from the dermatologist can often be serious enough
to warrant further testing and may involve the “Big C” — cancer
...

It is the most common type of skin cancer and is slow growing, usually occurring on the upper half of the face near the nose
...
Squamous
cell carcinoma is a malignant tumor of the squamous epithelial cells of the
epidermis
...
Malignant melanoma is a cancerous tumor
composed of melanocytes
...
Finally, mycoses fungoides is a rare chronic skin disease caused by
the infiltration of malignant lymphocytes
...




Breslow’s depth — a classification or staging of a malignant melanoma to
determine the prognosis factor, measuring the depth of invasion — is named
after Dr
...
This classification is
now included in the AJCC (American Joint Committee on Cancer) guidelines
for melanoma treatment
...
These two types of tests involve the winning combination of bacteria
and fungus
...



✓ Bacterial analysis is performed by taking a sample of a purulent or pusfilled material or exudates (fluid that accumulates in the space or passes
out of tissue)
...




✓ Fungal testing occurs when scrapings from skin lesion are placed on a
growth medium for several weeks and then examined for evidence of
fungal growth
...
Terminology: Integumentary
Surgeries and Procedures
Many of the more common, everyday integumentary conditions can be fixed
or improved via in-office or outpatient procedures
...
They are as follows:


✓ Debridement is the removal of dirt, foreign material, or damaged tissue
from a wound to prevent infection and promote healing
...




✓ Intradermal test is performed by injection of a reactive substance
between layers of the skin to observe for a reaction
...
Strong reactions indicate ongoing infection, or previous exposure
...
If area
becomes red and swollen, the result is positive
...
Involves using a surgical instrument
that removes a core of tissue by rotation of its sharp edge
...
Injecting the
vein with a sclerosing solution irritates the tissue, causes swelling, and
closes off the vein
...
Skin
lesions that might be in danger of producing a malignant change are
removed and sent for pathologic examination
...

We Americans are a vain people, no doubt
...
But consider that this type of surgical procedure can be about more than looking and feeling younger
...
For
example, cosmetic surgery helps the person with the scarred face caused in
an auto accident, the woman mourning the loss of a breast to cancer, or the
child born with a facial deformity
...
”



✓ Blepharoplasty is surgical reduction of the upper and lower eyelids
...




✓ CoolSculpting is a non-invasive procedure similar to liposuction where
fat cells are frozen, liquefied, picked up by the circulatory system, and
eliminated
...




✓ Dermabrasion means scraping away of the top layer of skin using sandpaper or wire brushes to remove tattoos or disfigured skin
...
Typically, the surgical replacement of injured or diseased skin
...




✓ Face lift, non-surgical is a non-invasive procedure using one or a combination of dermal fillers, Botox, and chemical facial peels to enhance and
improve the appearance of facial skin
...
This can also be used to
remove tattoos or warts from around the nails or on the soles of feet
...




✓ Liposuction is surgical removal of fat from subcutaneous tissue by
means of suction
...




✓ Rhytidectomy means removal of wrinkles by removal of excess facial
skin
...


More Integumentary Terms
The integumentary system involves many different components that are
not necessarily outwardly similar, from skin and hair to nails and glands
...
Table 14-3 shows a
sampling
...

While your other, also very important, systems handle the background
work that keeps you running, the senses let your body have a little fun
...
So the next time you’re smelling some truly fantastic barbecue or watching
a dazzling fireworks display, be grateful for your senses
...
Sight provides the most information for us, for what we see, of
course, but that includes what we can read
...
The eye lets light in, focuses it,
transforms it into nerve impulses, and sends these impulses to the brain
...
Behind the pupil is the lens, which focuses the light
...

The light is focused by the lens into the back of the eye, where it strikes the
retina
...

Figure 15-1 gives you a peek inside the eye
...
You might hear these in conversation or
see them on medical charts
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

The eye consists of the inner eye (the eyeball) and the outer eye (the facial
structures and eye muscles surrounding the eye)
...

The outer layer contains the cornea and the sclera
...
It allows light in and aids in the focusing of
light onto the back of the eye
...


Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems

Check your lenses
As light passes through the lens of the eye, the
light is bent in a process called refraction
...
In order to focus light, the lens
changes shape
...
This lens changing is called accommodation
...
Reading glasses
provide the refraction that the lens can no longer
perform
...
This results in a common
condition, cataracts
...


The middle layer, the uvea, consists of the choroids, the ciliary body, and the
iris
...
The ciliary body consists of the ciliary muscles and the ciliary process
...
The iris is the circular colored portion of the eye
...
In
bright light, muscle fibers in the iris contract the pupil
...
Radial muscles in
the iris enlarge the pupil beyond normal size when a person is stressed or
excited, called dilation
...
Each of your eyes has approximately 6 million cones and 120 million
­
rods in the retina
...
Color
and sharpness of vision depend on the cone cells
...
One small area of the retina has
no cones or rods and doesn’t produce a visual image
...

In front of and in back of the lens are two cavities
...
This watery fluid
flows freely from the posterior chamber, through the pupil, to the anterior
chamber
...
This condition, known as glaucoma, can result in blindness because
of damage caused to the retina and optic nerve, by the extra pressure
...
The posterior (back) cavity of the eye is filled with clear, jellylike
material called vitreous humor
...
Both the aqueous and
vitreous humors function to further refract light rays
...
The orbital cavity is the bony
depression that the eyeball fits
...
Eyelids shield the eye from light, dust, and trauma
...

The lacrimal apparatus produces, delivers, and drains tears from the eye, providing cleaning and lubricating
...
Small openings
called punctae drain tears from the eyes into channels in the nose
...
Tears clean and lubricate the eye as well
as fight infectious microorganisms
...
” Combined, they can be interpreted as “waterfall
...
Glaucoma — Greek glaukos — means
“blue-grey,” and oma means “a condition
...


The Ear
The ear has two functions: to hear and to help provide the body’s balance
or equilibrium
...
The sensations of sound are heard within the nerve fibers of the
­cerebral cortex
...




Figure 15-2:
Anatomy of
the ear
...
The outer and middle ears look after the conduction of sound waves
through the ear
...


Outer ear
Sound waves are encouraged toward the ear canal by the auricle, or pinna,
the visible outer ear, the hard, arching cartilage that forms the outer ear
curve, the tragus, that hard little flap of cartilage that sticks out in front of the
ear canal, and the earlobe
...
Cerumen (earwax)
lubricates and protects the ear
...


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Middle ear
As the eardrum vibrates, it moves three small bones or ossicles that make up
the middle ear
...

These bones in the order of their vibration are the malleus, the incus, and the
stapes
...
Another part of the middle
ear is the auditory or eustachian tube, a canal leading from the middle ear to
the pharynx
...


Inner ear
The inner ear is also called the labyrinth because of its circular, mazelike
structure
...
The cochlea contains auditory liquids that the vibrations travel through
...
Tiny hair cells in the organ of
Corti receive vibrations from the auditory liquids and relay the sound waves
to auditory nerve fibers, which end in the auditory center of the cerebral
cortex
...
”


Tympanic membrane comes from the Greek tympanon, meaning “drum,”
because it resembles a drum (hence eardrum)
...


Demystifying deafness
Deafness is diminished or total loss of hearing,
and there are two types
...
Examples could be build-up of
earwax (cerumen), or a foreign body lodged
in the external auditory meatus
...


Sensorineural deafness results from the
damage to the auditory nerve or cochlea, preventing nerve stimuli from reaching the brain
from the inner ear
...

Hearing aids can help in treating sensorineural
deafness
...


Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems
The ear is also an organ of equilibrium or balance
...
These organs contain a fluid called endolymph, as well as sensitive
hair cells
...
Messages are then sent
to muscles throughout the body so that equilibrium (balance) is maintained
...
An animal’s sense of smell is acute, as
it warns of danger and acts as a guide in finding food
...

The olfactory epithelium of the nose is the organ of smell
...
We can smell six basic
odors: fruity, flowery, spicy, burned, putrid, and resin
...

Because this chapter is about the special senses, we’re really dealing with the
nose’s sense of smell
...
But, if you’re so inclined to know
more about them, check out Chapter 17
...
Way to go!

The Mouth
The organs of taste are the taste buds, found on the tongue and in the mucous
membranes lining the soft palate of the mouth
...
For food to initiate the sensation of taste, it must be dissolved by saliva, which is why taste buds are
in a moist area
...
Our senses of taste and smell work together in this way
...


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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy

The Touch Receptor
The skin (the body’s largest organ) is our only touch receptor
...

The sensitive areas are those that provide the most information about ourselves and the external environment
...

The dermis of the skin has nerve endings that act as the receptors
...
The nervous system carries
messages to the brain when changes to temperature, injury, or pressure
occurs
...


Sensory Root Words
Get ready
...
Consider that this set of systems includes some delicate and sophisticated body parts: eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin
...

We’ll start small with taste, smell, and touch in Table 15-1
...


Table 15-1

Forms of Taste, Smell, and Touch

Word or Word Part

What It Means

A- or an-

Without, or lack of

Dys-

Difficult or uncomfortable

Geusia

Taste

Hyper-

Excess — more than normal

Hypo-

Less than normal

-itis

Inflammation

Osmia

Smell

Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems
See, that wasn’t so hard! Now that you have your feet wet (or nose, as it may
be), you can move on to the eye, which has about a gazillion (okay, maybe
that’s an exaggeration) root words and combining forms
...


Table 15-2

Visual Roots

Root Word

What It Means

Aque/o

Water

Blephar/o

Eyelid

Conjunctiv/o

Conjunctiva (membrane lining eyelids)

Core/o, cor/o

Pupil

Corne/o

Cornea

Dacry/o

Tear, tear duct

Dipl/o

Double

Emmetr/o

In due measure

Glauc/o

Gray

Ir/o, irid/o

Iris (colored portion of the eye)

Is/o

Equal

Kerat/o

Cornea

Lacrim/o

Tear, tear duct

Mi/o

Smaller, les

Mydri/o

Wide

Ocul/o

Eye

Ophthalm/o

Eye (ophthalmologist, specialist in eye disorders)

Opt/o

Eye, vision

Phac/o, phak/o

Crystalline lens

Phot/o

Light

Presby/o

Old age

Pupill/o

Pupil

Retin/o

Retina

Scler/o

Sclera (white of the eye)

Uve/o

Iris, ciliary body, and choroids

Vitre/o

Glassy

Xer/o

Dry

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy
A prefix and a few suffixes associated with sight include the ones in
Table 15-3
...
As such, medical professionals have a lot of words to use when
describing what goes on in there
...
Listen up to Tables 15-4 and 15-5
...
There are, however, several suffixes to keep you busy in Table 15-5
...
What can you say? There is a lot
of ground to cover with these, but very important, parts of your body
...

Get your flashcards and markers ready to rock
...
If
so, take a breather before continuing on to the next big list of words, which is
a big ol’ bunch of aural word salad (see Table 15-7)
...
Most of the conditions
associated with smell and taste involve the body’s inability to perform those
sensory tasks
...
So it
stands to reason that there are many more possible conditions associated
with your sense of sight
...
They are



✓ Chalazion: Small, hard mass on the eyelid due to oil gland enlargement



✓ Esotropia: A type of strabismus (one eye turns inward, cross-eyed)



✓ Exotropia: A type of strabismus (one eye turns outward)



✓ Glaucoma: Increased intraocular pressure



✓ Hemianopia (hemianopsia): Loss of one half of the visual field (the
space of vision of eye)

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✓ Hordeolum (sty or stye): An infection of the oil gland of the eyelid



✓ Nystagmus: Involuntary, rapid movements of the eyeball



✓ Retinal detachment: The retina, or part of it, becomes separated from
the choroid layer



✓ Strabismus: Abnormal deviation of the eye; also called a squint
Moving on to the other complicated sense organ, the ear, you can see that
quite a few of these conditions result in some form of hearing loss
...




✓ Macrotia: Abnormal enlargement of the pinna (excessively large ears)



✓ Microtia: Abnormally small pinna (excessively small ears)



✓ Myringitis: Inflammation of tympanic membrane



✓ Otalgia: Pain in the ear (earache)



✓ Otitis externa: Inflammation of the outer ear; also known as swimmer’s
ear



✓ Otitis media: Infection of the middle ear



✓ Tympanitis: Inflammation of the middle ear (otitis media)



✓ Serous otitis media: Inflammation of the inner ear without infection



✓ Suppurative otitis media: Bacterial infection of middle ear



✓ Tinnitus: Ringing sound in ears; cause unknown, may be associated with
chronic otitis, myringitis, or labyrinthitis



✓ Vertigo: Sensation of irregular or whirling motion, of body or external
objects, due to severe disturbance of equilibrium organs in the labyrinth

Finding the Culprit: Sensory
Diseases and Pathology
Once again, the eyes and ears rule
...
Some of the greatest hits
include


✓ Acoustic neuroma: Benign tumor in acoustic nerve in the brain causing
tinnitus, vertigo, and decreased hearing



✓ Cataract: Clouding of the lens, causing decreased vision

Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems


✓ Cholesteatoma: Collection of skin cells and cholesterol in a sac in the
middle ear



✓ Diabetic retinopathy: Retinal effects of diabetic mellitus



✓ Macular degeneration: Deterioration of the macula lutea of the retina



✓ Meniere’s disease or syndrome: Vertigo, hearing loss, nausea and tinnitus, leading to progressive deafness caused by rapid violent firing of the
fibers of the auditory nerves



✓ Otosclerosis: Hardening of the bony tissue of the labyrinth causing hearing loss and progressive deafness



✓ Presbycusis: Hearing loss occurring with old age



✓ Retinitis pigmentosa: Progressive retinal sclerosis and atrophy; an
inherited disease associated with decreased vision and night blindness
(nyctalopia)

Testing, Testing: Sensory Radiology
and Diagnostic Tests
Your physician will want to run a battery of tests if you ever encounter problems with any of your senses, particularly with the eyes and ears
...
These are tests to take very seriously:


✓ Audiogram: The graphed test results of audiometry



✓ Audiometry: An audiometer delivers acoustic stimuli of specific
frequencies to determine hearing for each frequency using an
instrument to measure acuity of hearing



✓ Diathermy: The use of high-frequency electrical current to coagulate
blood vessels within the eye



✓ Gonioscopy: Involves the examination of the angle of the anterior chamber of the eye to diagnose glaucoma



✓ Laser photocoagulation: Used to treat diabetic retinopathy and senile
macular degeneration



✓ Ophthalmoscopy: Visual examination of the interior of the eye



✓ Otoscopy: Visual examination of the ear with an otoscope



✓ Proetz test: Test for acuity of smell



✓ Slit lamp biomicroscopy: A microscopic study of the cornea, conjunctiva, iris, lens, and vitreous humor

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Part III: In Terms of Anatomy


✓ Tonometry: Measurement of the tension or pressure within the eye



✓ Tuning fork test (Weber’s test): A vibration source (tuning fork) is
placed on forehead to note sound perception on right, left, or midline



✓ Visual acuity: Test of clarity or clearness of vision; reading the Snedden
eye chart of black letters in decreasing size with the chart at a distance
of 20 feet
...
20/50 vision indicates the eye is able to see at 20 feet what it is
supposed to be able to see at 50 feet
...
Terminology: Surgeries
and Procedures
Thankfully, there is something that can be done about a lot of those common
eye conditions and diseases
...
Either
way, though, you might want to call a cab afterwards
...




✓ LASIK (Laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis): Commonly referred to as
laser eye surgery or laser vision correction — to correct myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism



✓ Phacoemulsification: Removal of cataract



✓ Phacoemulsification of a cataract: Involves using ultrasonic vibration
to break up portions of the lens
...




✓ PRK (Photoreactive keratectomy): Laser surgery used to reshape the
cornea to reduce the need for glasses or contact lenses

Chapter 15: It Depends on Your Perception: The Sensory Systems


✓ Scleroplasty: Repair of the sclera



✓ Vitrectomy: Diseased vitreous humor is removed and replaced with
clear solution
...
Some of the most
common clinical and surgical procedures for the ear include



✓ Fenestration: Forming an opening into the labyrinth to restore hearing



✓ Labyrinthectomy: Excision of the labyrinth



✓ Mastoidectomy: Excision of the mastoid bone



✓ Mastoidotomy: Incision into the mastoid bone



✓ Myringoplasty: Surgical repair of the tympanic membrane



✓ Myringotomy: Incision of the tympanic membrane performed to release
pus and relieve pressure in the middle ear



✓ Stapedectomy: Excision of the stapes



✓ Tympanectomy: Surgical removal of the eardrum



✓ Tympanoplasty: Surgical repair of the eardrum

Terminology RX: Sensory Pharmacology
Antibiotics, corticosteroids, and antivirals are often used to treat both ear and
eye infections
...
Most ophthalmic antibiotics are classified as topical
applications, as are corticosteroids used to treat inflammation often after surgery, trauma, or chemical contact
...


Do not confuse BSS with normal saline, as they are not the same
...



✓ Beta blockers are used to treat glaucoma
...




✓ Prostaglandin analogs are used to treat glaucoma
...


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Part IV

Let’s Get Some Physiology
Terminology



See a free online article on physiology fixes at www
...
com/extras/
medicalterminology
...



✓ Keeping the beat moving with discussion of the cardiovascular
system



✓ Inhaling terms for the respiratory system



✓ Ingesting terminology of the gastrointestinal system



✓ Cleaning up with the endocrine system



✓ Introducing the nervous system

Chapter 16

The Hear  t of the Mat  ter:
The Cardiovascular and
Lymphatic Systems
In This Chapter
▶ Discovering how your heart, blood vessels, and lymph nodes work together
▶ Memorizing root words, prefixes, and suffixes appropriate to these systems
▶ Familiarizing yourself with common cardiovascular and lymphatic conditions and

diseases

▶ Getting to the heart of the correct terms to use when diagnosing problems
▶ Understanding how to communicate terms used in surgeries and procedures

E

ver wonder how we have fresh, clean water to drink? A vast network of
lakes, reservoirs, pumping and purification stations, and pipes ultimately
bring us the life force that is water
...

Your cardiovascular system is not so different
...
Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to body tissues
and collects carbon dioxide and waste materials to be eliminated
...


How the Cardiovascular System Works
Let’s try another metaphor
...
The separate
but complementary lymphatic system works like ushers at a play, guiding

188

Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
no-longer-useful folks out at the end of the show
...
They are a merry band of players who must share the
spotlight
...
By pumping, the heart creates pressure that forces the
blood to move throughout the body via a channel system of arteries and
veins
...

The lymphatic system works to complement the actions of the cardiovascular system by carrying lymph fluid through the body via a system similar to
veins
...
In this chapter,
you find out more about the individual components of these two powerful
systems and get to know the specific terminology associated with both
...
A child’s is
100–120, an elephant’s about 25, a mouse’s 700, and a canary’s heart beats
about 1,000 times per minute
...
That’s 5 quarts a minute,
75 gallons per hour, 1,800 gallons a day, and 657,000 gallons per year
...
This word,
which you’ll get to know quite well in this chapter, is taken from the Greek
word kardia
...
But make no mistake, it’s all the same root
...
Each has its own special function and terminology to go along with it
...


The heart
To take a tour of the heart, consider three components: layers, chambers,
and valves
...
Located to the left of the midline of your chest’s center, this muscle,
about the size of your fist, pumps a continuous stream of life-giving blood
through your blood vessels
...




Figure 16-1:
Anterior
view of the
heart
...
It consists of three major
layers, each one performing a unique job in the day-to-day activities of your
most vital organ
...
” This is the inner
layer of the heart, lining the chambers and covering the valves
...
” This is the outer layer of
the heart
...
” This is the
actual heart muscle and makes up the thick middle layer
...
There are two types
of chambers:



✓ Atrium: Atrium is taken from the Greek word atrion, meaning “hall
...
Valves connect each
atrium to the ventricles below
...
” The right and left ventricles are thick, lower chambers and are
responsible for pumping blood
...


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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
The four heart chambers are separated by membranes called septa (plural of
septum)
...




✓ Interventricular septum separates the two ventricle chambers
...
They let a specific amount of blood into each chamber and
don’t allow it to flow backwards
...




✓ Bicuspid valve (also called mitral): The bi- prefix shows you that this
valve has two flaps
...




✓ Tricuspid valve: Tri- indicates this valve has three flaps, keeping blood
moving forward
...
Together, these different types of vessels work to carry blood pumped by the heart through the
body
...
Veins handle the movement of
deoxygenated blood
...


Arterial system
The arterial system is composed of arteries and arterioles (smaller arteries)
...
” Combined with
terein, meaning “to keep,” you get the word artery
...

The pulmonary artery, with its two branches, is the exception of the arterial
world
...


Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems
Venous system
The venous system is made up of veins and venules (little veins)
...
The journey ends with the blood from the head and upper
body being returned to the heart via the body’s largest veins, the superior
vena cava, and from the lower body via the inferior vena cava, received into
the right atrium
...


Capillaries
If you look at a map of the blood vessel system, you see that capillaries are
incredibly small and look tiny, like hair
...
” These super-tiny vessels (one cell thick, to be
exact) bridge the gap between arterioles and venules to keep blood flowing in
a continuous motion
...




Figure 16-2:
Artery,
vein, and
capillary
exchange
...

The rule of two will get you started
...
Similarly, the blood travels through two paths: the arterial system for
sending oxygen-rich blood out and the venous
system for bringing oxygen-poor blood back
...
” Remember? “You put your right
foot in
...


Think of where the blood goes in and out, and
you can click through around 15 cardiovascular
terms
...
 and it begins again
...

A large percentage of your blood is actually made up of plasma, which is, in
turn, largely composed of water
...
Here’s a bit more about what makes
up your blood:


✓ Plasma: Mostly water, a small percentage of plasma is composed of proteins, nutrients, waste, and gas
...




✓ Platelets: The body’s little firefighters
...




✓ Red blood cells: Also known as erythrocytes, these cells contain hemoglobin, an arrangement of proteins and iron composed of molecules
...




✓ White blood cells: Called leukocytes, these are the double agents of the
cardiovascular system
...


Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems
Path of the blood
Veins carry blood back to the heart via the superior and inferior venae cavae
...
The ventricle contracts, expelling the blood
into the pulmonary artery
...
”
The pulmonary arteries carry the blood through to the lungs where it is oxygenated
...




Thank good old Aristotle for the word aorta, meaning “that which is hung
...


Cardiac cycle
All this pumping and moving of blood comes down to rhythm
...

The rhythmic pulsations conduct through the AV node, down the AV bundle
(also known as the bundle of His), through the Purkinje fibers, jump-starting
contraction of the ventricles
...




✓ Systole is the period when ventricles contract and send blood out, causing pressure on the walls of the arteries during the heart’s contraction
...
” The difference lies in
the prefix
...
”

How the Lymphatic System Works
Most directly associated with immunity, we discuss the lymphatic system in
the same chapter as the cardiovascular system due to the similar make-up of
the system and the fact that, once cleaned by the lymph nodes, lymphatic fluid
is released directly into the bloodstream
...


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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
Lymphatic vessels


Lymphatic vessels borrow their name from the fluid they pump, called, not
surprisingly, lymph fluid
...
The word eventually took on Latin roots, when the n was replaced with l
...

The lymphatic vessels interlace with blood vessels to carry clean lymphatic
fluid through the body
...
The
proteins and water filter out of the blood and escape into tissue fluid
...


Lymph nodes, also called “glands”
Shaped much like small beans, the lymph nodes are located throughout the
body
...
Lymph nodes are located in
several regions of the body
...


Lymphatic System
The lymphatic system is largely responsible for creating an immunity barrier by developing and distributing lymphocytes, a type of WBC (white blood
cell) throughout the body
...
The lymph nodes release these lymphocytes and remove or
destroy antigens (foreign substances that invoke an immune response) that
circulate through the blood and lymphatic vessels
...
Consider it a one-way ticket for lymph
fluid to get into the bloodstream
...
The
lymph nodes also destroy invading cells and particles in a process known
as phagocytosis
...
It collects lymph from the body below the diaphragm and
from left side of body above the diaphragm
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

The spleen, tonsils, and thymus are accessory organs of this system
...

Some phagocytosis takes place in the spleen
...
The thymus produces cells that destroy foreign
substances
...

Table 16-1 lists cardio roots, prefixes, and suffixes
...


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Table 16-1

Breaking Down Your Cardio Words

Root Word

What It Means

Example

Aort/o

Aorta

Aortic

Angi/o

Vessel

Angiogram

Arteri/o

Artery

Arteriosclerosis

Arteriol/o

Arteriole

Arteriolitis

Ather/o

Yellow plaque or fatty substance

Atherosclerosis

Atri/o, atri/a

Atrium

Atrioventricular

Cardi/o

Heart

Cardiomegaly

Coron/o

Heart

Coronary

Ox/o, ox/i

Oxygen

Oximeter

Phleb/o

Vein

Phlebitis

Pulmon/o

Lung

Pulmonary

Scler/o

Hardening

Sclerotherapy

Thromb/o

Clot

Thrombus

Valv/o, valvul/o

Valve

Valvular

Vas/o

Vessel

Vasoconstriction

Ven/o

Vein

Venotomy

Venul/o

Venule

Venulitis

Ventricul/o

Ventricle

Ventricular

Prefix or Suffix

What It Means

Example

Brady

Slow

Bradycardia

Tachy

Fast

Tachycardia

-graph

Instrument used to record

Electrocardiograph

-graphy

Process of recording

Electrocardiography

-gram

Picture or finished record

Electrocardiogram

Table 16-2 lists lymphatic roots and suffixes
...
Table 16-3 lists some common cardiovascular and lymphatic vocabulary words
...
First, let’s consider what can ail
some of the individual parts of the heart
...
Endocarditis is the inflammation of the inner lining of the heart,
whereas pericarditis is an inflammation of the pericardial sac (pericardium)
...
Myocarditis is an inflammation of the muscle of the heart
...
Don’t forget congestive heart failure,
angina, and atrial fibrillation
...
Because it is
so multifaceted, the blood and its cells can harbor all sorts of conditions
...
The foreign material is called an embolus (plural emboli)
...
Lymphadenitis
is an inflammation of lymph nodes
...
And splenomegaly is an enlargement of the spleen
...
Pathology is the study of disease as it affects body tissue and function
...
Although all conditions and diseases should be considered serious, these heavy hitters are
ones that often require more in-depth procedures and treatments
...
Some pathological conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels include


✓ Aneurysm, a local widening of an artery, may be due to weakness in the
arterial wall or breakdown of the wall due to atherosclerosis
...


Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems


✓ Arterial hypertension refers to high blood pressure
...
In essential hypertension, the cause of the increased pressure is unknown or idiopathic
...




✓ Bacterial endocarditis is inflammation of the inner lining of the heart
caused by bacteria
...
The heart block is a
failure of proper conduction of impulses through the A-V node and can
be overcome by implantation of an electric pacemaker
...

Damage to the heart valves can produce lesions called vegetations,
which may break off in the bloodstream as emboli or floating clots
...



✓ Cardiac arrhythmia is an abnormal heart rhythm
...




✓ Congenital heart disease refers to abnormalities in the heart at birth,
resulting from some failure in the development of the fetus
...
Surgical treatment consists of
removal of the constricted area with end-to-end anastomosis or joining
together of the aortic segments
...
Blood accumulates in the lungs
and liver
...
Congestive heart
failure often develops gradually over the years and can be treated with
drugs to strengthen the heart and diuretics to promote loss of fluid
...
This is usually the result of atherosclerosis, the deposition
of fatty compounds on the inner lining of the coronary arteries
...
Murmurs are heard with the aid of a stethoscope and are
caused by a valvular defect or disease, which disrupts the smooth flow
of blood in the heart
...




✓ Mitral valve prolapse is improper closure of the mitral valve when the
heart is pumping blood, often referred to as a “floppy valve
...

These may be triggered by cold temperature, stress, or smoking
...




✓ Varicose veins are abnormally swollen veins usually occurring in the
legs, due to damaged valves that fail to prevent the backflow of blood
...

The blood itself can suffer from specific diseases and pathological conditions
...

Anemia, a common symptom, is a deficiency in erythrocytes or hemoglobin,
can take several forms, including the following:



✓ Aplastic anemia: Failure of blood cell production due to absence of
development and formation of bone marrow cells



✓ Hemolytic anemia: Reduction in red cells due to excessive destruction



✓ Pernicious anemia: Lack of mature erythrocytes due to inability to
absorb vitamin B12



✓ Sickle-cell anemia: Hereditary condition in which distorted cells clump
and block blood vessels
Other issues affecting the blood include thalassemia, an inherited defect in
the ability to produce hemoglobin; polycythemia vera, a malignant condition
associated with increased red blood cells; and hemochromatosis, excessive
deposits of iron through the body
...

The white blood cells often make people think of the “Big C,” also known as
cancer
...
Leukemia, of course, is the kingpin of white
blood cell pathology
...
Four forms of leukemia include:



✓ Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL): Seen most often in children and
adolescents



✓ Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML): Derived from or originating in
bone marrow; follows an aggressive course

Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems


✓ Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL): Occurs late in life and follows a
slow, progressive course



✓ Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML): Slowly progressive
All types of leukemia are treated with chemotherapy, using drugs that prevent cell division and selectively injure rapidly dividing cells
...
Relapse
occurs when leukemia cells reappear in the blood and bone marrow, necessitating further treatment
...
This is a malignant tumor of bone marrow in which malignant cells
invade bone marrow and destroy bony structures
...




✓ Purpura is a symptom caused by low platelets involving multiple pinpoint hemorrhages and accumulation of blood under the skin
...
Who knew that such small things like lymph nodes could be
so prone to disease?
The lymph nodes themselves are the sites of many a showdown between good
health and an extended hospital stay
...
Lymphosarcoma
(lymphoma) is a malignant tumor of lymph nodes that resembles Hodgkin’s
disease
...
Burkitt’s lymphoma is a malignant
tumor of lymph nodes usually affecting children and most common in central
Africa
...

Sometimes those pesky lymph nodes just get too big for their britches in diseases like the following:



✓ Lymphadenitis: Inflammation of lymph nodes usually due to infection



✓ Mononucleosis: Acute infectious disease with enlarged lymph nodes and
spleen due to increased numbers of lymphocytes and monocytes



✓ Sarcoidosis: Inflammatory disease in which small nodules form in lymph
nodes and other organs

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HIV and AIDS
Perhaps the most serious diseases affecting
the cardiovascular and lymphatic systems are
HIV and AIDS
...


AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome)
is a disease marked by a decrease in immune
response in which the patient has severe depletion of helper T-cell lymphocytes
...
Think
about the insurance claim notices you receive every time you get blood work
or a urine sample done
...

Lab tests for issues affecting the heart include serum enzyme test or studies,
more commonly known as cardiac enzymes
...
These enzymes can be measured and are useful as evidence of
an infarction
...
High levels of triglycerides and cholesterol can be associated with a
greater risk of coronary atherosclerosis
...
Blood work can
help reveal a plethora of problems that not only affect blood but also major
systems and organs
...

Lipoprotein electrophoresis is a process in which lipoproteins (fat and protein
molecules bound together) are physically separated from a blood sample
...
Having high levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), containing less lipids, is a positive factor in keeping the heart
healthy
...
So, just remember H
for “happy
...
Remember L for “lousy
...
(Rh-negative is a blood type in
which all Rh factors are lacking
...




✓ Coagulation time is the time required for blood to clot in a test tube;
normal time is less than 15 minutes
...
The rate is altered in disease conditions such as infection, joint inflammation, and tumor
...




✓ Platelet count is the number of platelets per cubic millimeter of blood
...


A common diagnostic test counts the red blood cells and/or the white
blood cells
...
The normal number is about
5 million per cubic millimeter
...



✓ Prothrombin time (PT) measures the ability of the blood to clot, used
to follow patients taking blood thinners or anticoagulant drugs such as
Coumadin
...


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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology

Abbreviations: Keep it short and simple
You probably won’t believe us, but saying
all these terms over and over again can get
tedious
...
Terminology: Cardiovascular
and Lymphatic Surgeries
and Procedures
So, what do you do about all these conditions and diseases? Thankfully, there
are almost as many possible surgeries and procedures as there are conditions
and diseases
...
The great majority of these directly involve the old ticker
...

Speaking of electricity, cardioversion or defibrillation is a treatment procedure
whereby short discharges of electricity are applied across the chest to stop
cardiac arrhythmia
...
This is often used to diagnose an enlarged heart
...
Video
equipment and computer are used to produce x-rays of the blood vessels
...
In cardiac catheterization, a catheter is introduced into a vein or artery
and guided into the heart for purposes of detecting pressure and patterns of
blood flow
...


Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems
The presence of areas of ischemia (deficiency of blood in a body part due
to constriction or complete obstruction of a blood vessel) and myocardial
infarction can be demonstrated on this scan
...
An echocardiogram and other measurements of blood pressure and breathing rate are
taken while the patient is exercising, usually jogging on a treadmill
...




✓ Laser angioplasty uses light amplification to stimulate emission of radiation or a laser beam to blocked arteries, especially in the legs
...
Inflation of the balloon flattens the plaque against the vessel
wall and allows blood to circulate more freely
...




✓ Stent Insertion: Percutaneous coronary intervention often follows
PTCA
...




✓ Venogram: X-ray film of the veins taken after the injection of dye
...

A bone marrow biopsy is just as serious as it sounds
...
This procedure is
helpful in the diagnosis of blood disorders such as anemia and leukemia
...
Bone
marrow cells from a donor, whose tissue and blood cells match those of the
recipient, are infused into a patient with leukemia or aplastic anemia
...

Taking a closer look at the lymphatic system’s working parts involves the
lymphangiogram, when dye is injected into lymph vessels in the foot and
an x-ray is taken to show the path of lymph flow as it moves into the chest
region
...


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Zen and the art of ticker maintenance
Sometimes surgeons have to get down and
dirty to fix a heart condition
...
Though it may be hard to believe that
these surgeries are standard issue, remember
that heart surgeons perform them every day
with great success
...
An
endarterectomy is an excision within an artery
of a thickened interior, usually named for the
artery that is being “cleaned out
...
This is also called
venipuncture
...


Think bypasses are only for major cities with
traffic issues? Not so
...


Bypass surgery can now be performed using
MIDCAB (minimally invasive direct coronary
artery bypass graft) and TECAB (totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass graft) with the
help of the world’s most advanced surgical
robot, da Vinci Si
...

With the surgeon’s guidance, the procedure
The big fun happens when surgeons get more
that once required a 10- to 12-inch sternal inciinvolved with the heart
...

to regulate the heart rate
...
In the meantime, you have us
...

Antiarrhythmics correct cardiac arrhythmias (irregular heartbeat)
...

Anticoagulants slow blood clotting
...


Chapter 16: The Heart of the Matter: The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic Systems
Antihypertensives prevent or control high blood pressure
...

Beta blockers treat hypertension, angina, and other abnormal heart rhythms
...

Calcium channel blockers treat hypertension, angina, and various abnormal
heart rhythms
...

Lipid-lowering agents reduce blood lipid (fat) levels, such as niacin (Nicobid),
lovastatin (Mevacor), and atorvastatin (Lipitor)
...
Perhaps the only time you are conscious
of what your respiratory system does is when it is working ­ vertime — during
o
your workout or at the top of stairs you just climbed
...
Breathing is something we don’t give much thought
to because it looks after itself automatically
...


How the Respiratory System Works
Air contains about 21 percent oxygen that is inhaled through the nose, finds
its way to the lungs, into the lungs’ air spaces, and passes into tiny capillary
blood vessels surrounding the air spaces
...
Exhaled
air contains about 16 percent oxygen
...
This process is called internal or cellular respiration
...

Oxygen passes out of the bloodstream and into the tissue cells
...

Capnia comes from the Greek kapnos, meaning “smoke
...





The normal adult cycle of inhaling and exhaling, including a short rest between,
takes place about 16–18 times per minute
...

Figure 17-1 illustrates the respiratory system
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

Nose
When we inhale, or inspire, air enters the body through the nose via the
external nasal nares (nostrils) and passes through the nasal cavity
...

The paranasal sinuses are hollow, air spaces in the skull that join up with the
nasal cavity
...
They make the bones of the skull lighter and help in the production

Chapter 17: Just Breathe: The Respiratory System
of sound (which is why you sound different when your sinuses are clogged)
...
The singular form of
nostrils, or nares, is naris
...


Pharynx and larynx
After passing through the nasal cavity, air reaches the pharynx (the throat),
which is made up of three parts
...
Below the nasopharynx, closer to the mouth, is the oropharynx, where the tonsils, two rounded
masses of lymphatic tissue, are located
...
This area is divided into two branches,
the larynx (voice box) and the esophagus (passage to stomach)
...
The
vocal cords have a slit between them called the glottis
...
As food
enters from the mouth and air enters from the nose, they both come together
in the pharynx
...
” The term was once used for the prostate gland
...




What stops food from going into the trachea and respiratory system after
it’s swallowed? The epiglottis is a flap of cartilage attached to the roof of the
tongue that acts like a lid over the larynx
...


Trachea
On its way to the lungs, air passes from the larynx to the trachea (windpipe),
a tube 4½ inches long and about 1 inch in diameter
...
Some
of these rings make up the thyroid cartilage forming the projection called the
Adam’s apple
...
The name is
thought to come from the story that Adam sinned when he ate the forbidden
fruit and was unable to swallow the apple stuck in his throat
...
Each bronchus (the
singular form of bronchi) goes to a separate lung and subdivides into smaller
and finer tubes, like the branches of a tree
...
At the end of the bronchioles are clusters of
air sacs called alveoli
...
This very thin wall permits exchange of gases between the
alveolus and capillaries that surround and come in close contact with it
...
The oxygenated blood then
carries the oxygen to all parts of the body
...
” The ancient
Greeks believed that the esophagus carried solid food to stomach and the
bronchi carried liquids (which it doesn’t, and not to the stomach, for sure)
...
The outer layer nearest to the ribs is parietal pleura
...
The pleura is moistened with a watery fluid that assists in the
movement of the lungs in the chest cavity
...
The right lung is slightly larger than the left, divided into three
lobes, the right upper, middle, and lower lobes
...
To remember how many lobes each lung has,
remember that the heart resides on the left side of the chest, thus taking up
more room and hence leaving room for only two lobes
...

The lungs extend from the collarbone to the diaphragm in the chest cavity
...
This muscle aids in the process of breathing
...
The downward movement of the muscle enlarges the thoracic cavity area, allowing air
to flow into the lungs to equalize pressure
...
Air is then expelled out of the lungs to equalize
the pressure
...


Chapter 17: Just Breathe: The Respiratory System

Short breaths: Respiratory abbreviations
The respiratory system is known for having
some, um, long-winded words
...
You’ll be sounding like
a cast member of a medical drama in no time
...
” Ektasis, “expansion,” is
an incomplete expansion of the lung, in particular at birth
...
This can cause the lungs to remain uninflated long enough for the air
sacs to collapse into each other and create dead spaces in the lungs
...

Each one is equally important
...
Similarly, the parts of medical terms must coexist and
work together to help us understand their meanings
...
Let’s start at the beginning, in Table 17-1, with prefixes
...


Table 17-2

Exhale with Respiratory Suffixes

Suffix

What It Means

-ar, –ary

Pertaining to

-capnia

Carbon dioxide

-centesis

Surgical puncture with needle to aspirate fluid

-ectasis

Stretching or expansion

-gram

Record

-graphy

Process of recording

-itis

Inflammation

-osmia

Smell

-ostomy

Creation of an artificial opening

-oxia

Oxygen

-pnea

Breathing

-scope

Instrument used to visually examine

-scopy

Visual examination

-sphyxia

Pulse

-stenosis

Narrowing or constricting

-thorax

Chest

Chapter 17: Just Breathe: The Respiratory System
Root words and combining forms associated with the respiratory system
include the ones listed in Table 17-3
...
For example, respirology is the study of respiratory diseases and
respiratory system, and a respirologist is a physician specializing in disorders
and treatment of respiratory systems
...
Good old oxygen is the gas that passes
into the bloodstream in the lungs and travels to all body cells
...
Internal respiration is the exchange of gases at the tissue cells
...
Acapnia is the absence or less
than normal level of carbon dioxide in blood, whereas anoxia is the absence
of oxygen in the blood
...
Get to know the following individual components
of the system a bit better:



✓ Adenoids: A collection of lymph tissue in the nasopharynx



✓ Alveolus: An air sac in the lung

Chapter 17: Just Breathe: The Respiratory System


✓ Apex: Upper portion of the lung



✓ Apical: Pertaining to the apex



✓ Base: The lower portion of the lung



✓ Bronchus: The branch of the trachea that acts as the passageway into
the air spaces of the lung



✓ Bronchioles: Smallest branches of the bronchi



✓ Bronchodilator: Agent causing the bronchi to widen or open up



✓ Cilia: Tiny hairs in the mucous membranes lining the respiratory tract



✓ Hilum: Middle portion of lung where bronchi, blood vessels, and nerves
enter and exit the lungs



✓ Lobes: Divisions of the lungs
...

Table 17-4 is a grouping of additional vocabulary words that you need to
know in order to relate to the respiratory system
...
Asthma is attacks of paroxysmal dyspnea (sudden onset
of wheezing and difficulty breathing) with airway inflammation and wheezing due to contraction of the bronchi, leading to airway obstruction if severe
enough
...



Asthma comes from the Greek astma, meaning “to pant
...

Atelectasis, for example, is the imperfect expansion of air sacs of the lungs
...
Often seen in heavy smokers, this condition is marked by loss of
elasticity of the lungs
...
A couple of different varieties exist: Lobar pneumonia involves distribution of infection in one or more lobes of a lung, whereas pneumocystis carinii
pneumonia (PCP) is an infectious disease caused by P
...
It is fungal in origin and is common in AIDS patients
...
It can be caused by many different infectious agents
such as viruses, bacteria, and what are known as atypical agents, such as
Mycoplasma, a common cause of pneumonia in teenagers and young adults
...
Sixty to 80 percent of AIDS patients develop PCP
...
Sometimes foreign particles sneak
in, like crashers at your respiratory party
...

Pneumoconiosis is an abnormal condition of dust in the lungs
...
Pleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura
...
Examples of a pleural effusion include empyema (that pus in the pleural cavity you read about earlier) and Hemothorax,
which is blood in the pleural cavity typically caused by a trauma, and is not
quite as common but obviously a serious problem — just ask anyone who

Chapter 17: Just Breathe: The Respiratory System
works in the ER
...

But wait! There’s more fluid and pus! It can be a pusapalooza in those lungs,
and can often develop into very serious conditions, like these three:


✓ Pulmonary abscess: Localized area of pus formation in the lungs



✓ Pulmonary edema: Swelling and fluid in the air sacs and bronchioles,
caused by poor blood supply to the heart muscle



✓ Pulmonary embolism: Floating clot or other material blocking the blood
vessels of the lung
If you thought that was all that could possibly affect your breathing, think
again
...
Here
are some more examples:



✓ Adenoiditis: Inflammation of the adenoids



✓ Atelectasis: Incomplete expansion of the lungs



✓ Bronchiectasis: Dilatation of the bronchi



✓ Bronchitis: Inflammation of the bronchi



✓ Laryngitis: Inflammation of the larynx



✓ Laryngotracheobronchitis: Croup



✓ Pneumothorax: Air between the lung and chest wall



✓ Pulmonary neoplasm: A new growth in the lung, which can be malignant or benign depending on the composition



✓ Rhinitis: Inflammation of mucous membranes of nose



✓ Tonsillitis: Inflammation of the tonsils



✓ Tracheitis: Inflammation of the trachea

Finding the Culprit: Respiratory
Diseases and Pathology
Now for the really serious, land-you-in-the-hospital sort of stuff: diseases
and pathological disorders
...
Because of its communicable nature, this
infectious disease, which is caused by acid-fast bacilli spread by inhalation

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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
of infected droplets, always causes a commotion when reported to health
officials
...
TB is a bit more under control today
and is treated with a specific antibiotic regime, usually over a long-term
(6-month) period
...

Diphtheria is another infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract, affecting the throat
...
Though for most people nowadays it involves
some time off work and chicken soup, the flu can be deadly if not treated, or
in high-risk groups like small children and the elderly
...



Legionnaires’ disease gained notoriety after a highly publicized epidemic of it
occurred at the American Legion convention in 1976
...
There are a few more respiratory diseases you
should know
...




✓ Bronchogenic carcinoma is a cancerous tumor arising from the bronchus
...




✓ Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) refers to any persistent lung disease that obstructs the bronchial airflow
...




✓ Cor pulmonale is a serious cardiac disease associated with chronic lung
disorders such as emphysema
...




✓ Pulmonary edema means fluid accumulation in the alveoli and bronchioles
...




✓ URI is upper respiratory tract infection of pharynx, larynx, and trachea
...
It’s hard to have a LRI without the
URI, but you can have the URI by itself
...
One that is
commonly associated with children is pertussis, more commonly known as whooping cough
...
Croup (laryngotracheobronchitis) is
another respiratory disease affecting children
...

On a whole other level are those diseases that
can be inherited
...


This is an inherited disease of infants and children in which there is excess mucus production
in the respiratory tract
...
It is a multitude
of dysfunctions, but the mucus production is the
main problem
...


Testing, Testing: Respiratory Radiology
and Diagnostic Tests
Now that you have all these conditions and disease terms floating around in
your head, you’re probably wondering what, if anything, can be done about
them? Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, there are all sorts of
ways physicians and other medical professionals can diagnose what ails
those airways
...
Every time, for example, the
doctor listens to your heart and lungs with a stethoscope, she is performing
auscultation, which simply means 
...
This simple method allows doctors and nurses to hear
the sounds of the lungs, pleura, heart, and abdomen
...
A laryngoscopy occurs when the larynx
is visualized with a laryngoscope
...
A tracheostomy is cutting an opening into the trachea through the neck
and inserting a tube to facilitate passage of air or removal of secretions
...
These are
all part of a normal physical examination either in hospital or in physician’s
office
...
Some are more invasive than others, whereas some simply involve
more looking and listening with the aid of medical equipment
...




✓ Chest x-ray (CXR): Radiograph of chest to evaluate heart and lungs
...




✓ Lung biopsy: Lung tissue is obtained by forceps or brush (bronchial
brushing)
...




✓ Lung scan: Radioactive material is injected or inhaled and images are
recorded of its distribution into lung tissue
...




✓ Pulmonary function tests evaluate ventilation capacity of the lung
...




✓ Sputum culture: Sputum is analyzed for presence of bacteria
...




✓ Tuberculin test is when an antigen is applied to the skin by multiple
punctures or tines test, or intradermally by the Mantoux test
...

One very useful way to view what is going on in the respiratory system is to
use x-ray and endoscopic procedures to take a closer look
...
Another widely used
diagnostic method is the bronchoscopy, a visual examination of the bronchus
using a bronchoscope
...
This is when physicians and radiologists use ­ omputerized
c
images of the chest cavity to diagnose tumors, abscesses, and pleural
effusion
...
Terminology: Respiratory
Surgeries and Procedures
Now you’ve got the tools to identify and diagnose conditions and diseases
of the respiratory system, so get your instruments and scrub in, because it’s
time to operate
...
As such, these terms are fairly straightforward
...

Start at the top, with repairs made to the nose
...

Moving down to the throat region, you have the adenoidectomy, an excision
of adenoids
...

Two terms relate directly to the larynx
...
Moving on to
the trachea, we have the tracheotomy, often popularized in television and
movies using some non-medical character who must perform one with a
bottle of vodka and a Swiss Army knife or ball point pen
...
A tracheoplasty is a surgical repair of the trachea
...
Here are some of the most common surgeries and procedures pertaining to that area of the respiratory system:


✓ Decortication of lung: Surgical removal of surface layer of lung, when
thick outer layer restricts lung expansion



✓ Lobectomy: Excision of a lobe of a lung



✓ Lung transplantation: Partial or total surgical removal of diseased lungs,
replaced by lungs from a donor



✓ Pleurocentesis: Surgical puncture to aspirate fluid from pleural space



✓ Pneumonectomy: Excision of a lung



✓ Thoracocentesis: Surgical puncture to aspirate fluid from the chest
cavity



✓ Thoracotomy: Incision into the chest cavity

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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology

Terminology RX: Respiratory
Pharmacology
Several kinds of medicines are used to treat the respiratory system
...
Bronchodilators
are used to treat asthma, COPD, and exercise-induced bronchospasm
...
They are usually given
orally, intravenously, or by nebulizer or aerochamber (inhaler) administered
in puffs
...
Diuretics
(water pills) are used to treat pulmonary edema
...
Antihistamines help dry up secretions
...
Antitussives
decrease coughing by suppressing the cough center in the brain
...
If overthe-­ ounter meds just won’t cut it, a prescription may be in order
...

Silver nitrate can be used to cauterize superficial blood vessels that cause
nosebleeds
...
Your gastrointestinal (sometimes abbreviated GI) system has to
work hard to make all that meat and potatoes into a useful substance that
your body can use as energy, and it can only hold so much at one time
...
Only so many kids
can jump in, because otherwise the water overflows and makes a big mess
...
If you put too many things in,
something’s bound to overflow
...
Elastic
pants are optional
...

This system and its organs perform three primary functions:


✓ Carrying food for digestion



✓ Preparing it for absorption



✓ Transporting waste products for elimination

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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology

How the Gastrointestinal System Works
Digestion begins with our help
...
It has to be broken
down and digested both mechanically and chemically, as it makes its way
through the gastrointestinal tract
...

During the digestive process, proteins break down to amino acids, complicated sugars reduce to simple sugars, such as glucose, and large fat molecules are broken down into fatty acids and triglycerides
...
By this process,
nutrients like sugar and amino acids travel to all cells in the body
...

The third stage is elimination of solid waste materials that cannot be
absorbed into the bloodstream
...

You can follow the merry route taken through the various passages and
organs that make up the digestive system, as shown in Figure 18-1
...
The lips provide
the opening and the cheeks form the walls
...
Then everything
blends in together
...
And that concludes our discovery tour of the pharynx
...
” The tongue extends from the floor of the mouth
and is attached by muscles to the lower jawbone
...
The tongue is covered with tiny projections called papillae, which contain taste buds that are
sensitive to the chemical nature of foods
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

The teeth are important because, during the chewing process, they break
down food into smaller pieces to make the swallowing process easier
...
These glands produce saliva, which contains digestive enzymes
...
Narrow salivary ducts carry the saliva into the oral
cavity
...
It acts as the passageway for air from the nasal
cavity to the larynx (voice box) but also as a food passageway going from the
mouth to the esophagus
...


Esophagus
The esophagus is a 9–10-inch muscular tube from the pharynx to the stomach
...

Peristalsis is the involuntary process of wavelike contractions in the esophagus that helps the food reach its next destination
...


Stomach
Food passes from the esophagus into the stomach
...
The lining of the stomach consists of folds called rugae, which allow
the stomach to stretch when food enters
...
The esophageal
(or cardiac) sphincter relaxes and contracts moving food from the esophagus
into the stomach, and the pyloric sphincter allows food to leave the stomach
when it has been sufficiently broken down
...
Food is churned and mixed with gastric juices to make a semiliquid
called chyme
...
The stomach controls passage of food into the first part of the
small intestine, so it proceeds only when it is chemically ready and in small
amounts
...
Food doesn’t pass through these organs, but each plays a role in the
proper digestion and absorption of nutrients
...
Bile is continuously released
from the liver and travels down the hepatic duct to the cystic duct
...
After meals, the gallbladder contracts, forcing bile into the common bile
duct joining with the pancreatic duct, just before the entrance of the duodenum
...


Pancreas
The pancreas produces juices filled with enzymes, amylase and lipase, to
digest food
...
An
endocrine gland (see Chapter 19), the pancreas also secretes insulin
...

The pancreas is so named because of its fleshy appearance
...
”

Gallbladder
The gallbladder is a saclike structure 3–4 inches long tucked under the right
lobe of the liver
...
It stores bile until needed in the duodenum to aid digestion
...
If inflamed or containing stones (a calcified
pebble formed in the gallbladder), it is surgically removed
...


Intestines
The small intestine, or small bowel, extends from the pyloric sphincter to the
first part of the large intestine
...
The duodenum, a foot in length, receives the chyme from the
stomach, as well as bile from the liver and gallbladder and pancreatic juices
from the pancreas
...
That
cabbie has nothing on this part of your gastrointestinal system
...
It ascends up the right side
of the abdomen, transverses across, and then
descends down the left side, twisting and turning all over the lower half of your body
...

Enzymes and bile help digest food before it passes into the second part of the
small intestine, the jejunum
...
Most of the absorption
process takes place in the ileum
...
Through tiny capillaries in the
villi, digested nutrients pass through to enter the bloodstream and lymph
vessels
...




Here’s a quick look at two parts of the intestine
...
Ileum (Greek
cilein) means “to roll
...

The large intestine, or large bowel, extends from the end of the ileum to the
anus
...

It is 5 feet long and about 2½ inches in diameter
...

The appendix hangs from the cecum
...
The
colon has three divisions: the ascending, transverse, and descending colon
...
The rectum terminates at the lower opening of the gastrointestinal tract at the anus
...


Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System

Gastrointestinal Root Words
A lot of players work together in the gastrointestinal tract
...
The prefixes and suffixes
listed in Table 18-1 will help you keep all the body parts, ailments, and procedures straight
...

Consider the combining forms and root words as you would the stomach —
they break the word down into its most useful component
...


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Table 18-2

The Meaty Part: Gastrointestinal Root Words

Root Word

What It Means

Abdomin/o

Abdomen

An/o

Anus

Appendic/o

Appendix

Bucc/o

Cheek (facial)

Cec/o

Cecum

Celi/o

Belly

Cheil/o

Lips

Chol/e, bil/i

Gall, bile

Cholecyst/o

Gallbladder

Choledoch/o

Common bile duct

Col/o, colon/o

Colon

Dent/o, odont/o

Teeth

Duoden/o

Duodenum

Enter/o

Small intestine

Esophag/o

Esophagus

Gastr/o

Stomach

Gingiv/o

Gums

Gloss/o

Tongue

Gluc/o, glyc/o

Sugar

Hepat/o

Liver

Ile/o

Ileum

Jejun/o

Jejunum

Labi/o

Lips

Lapar/o

Abdomen

Lingu/o, gloss/o

Tongue

Lip/o

Fat, lipids

Odont/o

Teeth

Or/o

Mouth, oral

Palat/o

Palate

Pancreat/o

Pancreas

Peritone/o

Peritoneum

Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System
Root Word

What It Means

Pharyng/o

Pharynx

Proct/o

Anus, rectum

Pylor/o

Pylorus

Rect/o

Rectum

Sialaden/o

Salivary gland

Sial/o

Saliva

Sigmoid/o

Sigmoid colon

Splen/o

Spleen

Steat/o

Fat

Stomat/o

Mouth

Submaxill/o

Lower jaw

Tonsill/o

Tonsil

Uvul/o

Uvula

Common Gastrointestinal Conditions
Because the gastrointestinal system is made of many parts, it shouldn’t be a
surprise that it can be prone to all sorts of ailments and maladies
...
Thankfully, two types
of professionals can help find solutions to maladies of the mouth that affect
mastication (chewing)
...
The periodontist specializes in
diseases of the tissue around the teeth
...

Now, take a closer look at some of the conditions these specialists treat:


✓ Aphthous stomatitis: Canker sores in mouth



✓ Bruxism: Grinding teeth involuntarily, often while sleeping



✓ Cleft palate: Congenital split in the roof of the mouth or upper lip



✓ Dental caries: Cavities in the teeth (caries means “decay”)



✓ Dysphasia: Difficulty speaking

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✓ Edentulous: Without teeth



✓ Gingivitis: Inflammation of gums



✓ Halitosis: Bad breath



✓ Herpes simplex: Cold sore or fever blister on lip or nose due to herpes
virus



✓ Leukoplakia: White plaques or patches of mouth mucosa



✓ Sublingual: Under the tongue



Your baby teeth are also called the primary teeth
...
Your permanent teeth number 32,
with 8 incisors, 8 premolars, 4 canines, and 12 molars
...

Many of the following conditions result in discomfort both in swallowing
(deglutition) and in the digestion process:



✓ Aphagia: Inability to swallow



✓ Dysphagia: Difficulty swallowing



✓ Esophageal varices: Just like varicose veins in the legs; boggy veins with
inefficient valves that allow venous backflow, resulting in stagnant blood
in bulging veins



✓ Esophagitis: Inflammation of the esophagus



✓ Heartburn: Burning sensation caused by reflux or flowing back of acid
from the stomach into esophagus



To keep dysphasia and dysphagia straight, remember the s in dysphasia for
“speak,” and the g in dysphagia for “gag
...
Gastroenterology is the study of the stomach and intestines,
and a gastroenterologist is the physician who treats conditions of the stomach
and intestines
...
So, have your antacids ready for these:



✓ Dyspepsia: Difficult digestion



✓ Emesis (vomiting): Stomach contents expelled through the mouth



✓ Eructation: Act of belching or raising gas from stomach

Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System


✓ Gastric ulcer: Lesion on wall of stomach; also known as peptic ulcer



✓ Gastritis: Inflammation of the stomach



✓ Gastrodynia: Pain in the stomach



✓ Hematemesis: Vomiting of blood



✓ Hiatal hernia: Protrusion of part of the stomach through the esophageal
opening into diaphragm



✓ Hyperemesis: Excessive vomiting



✓ Nasogastric: Pertaining to nose and stomach



✓ Nausea: Urge to vomit



✓ Regurgitation: Return of solids and fluids to mouth from stomach



✓ Ulcer: Sore or lesion of mucous membrane or skin
The liver, pancreas, and gallbladder all experience their own specific conditions, the most common of which is good, old-fashioned, often-painful
gallstones
...
The sheer length of these
organs makes diagnosis and treatment a long and winding road
...
If you or someone you know
shows any signs of these disorders, please
seek medical help immediately
...
Here are
the most serious disorders of this type:
✓ Anorexia: Loss of or lack of appetite
✓ Anorexia nervosa: Psychiatric condition
involving self-deprivation of food, lack of

appetite, an abnormal fear of becoming
obese with pathological weight loss
✓ Bulimia: Gorging with food and then purging, most commonly by inducing vomiting
or use of intense exercise or laxatives/
diuretics
✓ Cachexia: Generalized weight loss and
wasting, due to poor nutrition or chronic
disease

Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System

Finding the Culprit: Gastrointestinal
Diseases and Pathology
The gastrointestinal system can also play host to even more pathological
diseases
...



✓ Appendicitis: Inflammation of the appendix



✓ Cholecystitis: Inflammation of the gallbladder



✓ Crohn’s disease: Inflammation and ulceration of the intestinal tract of
terminal or end portion of ileum



✓ Diverticulitis: Inflammation of diverticula (singular: diverticulum)



✓ Enteritis: Inflammation of the intestine



✓ Gastroenteritis: Inflammation of stomach and intestine



✓ Hepatitis A: Acute inflammation of the liver, spread by fecal-oral
contact



✓ Hepatitis B: Inflammation of the liver due to a virus transmitted by
blood and body fluids



✓ Hepatitis C: Virus affecting the liver spread through blood and body
fluids
...




✓ Hepatitis: Inflammation of the liver caused by virus or damage to the
liver



✓ Pancreatitis: Inflammation of pancreas



✓ Periodontal disease: Inflammation and degeneration of gums, teeth, and
surrounding bone



✓ Ulcerative colitis: Chronic inflammation of colon with ulcers
As you can see, inflammation is a huge issue with the gastrointestinal system
...




✓ Celiac disease: Also known as malabsorption syndrome, this disease
is thought to be precipitated by gluten-containing foods
...
The disease can be hereditary and is common in
people of Irish origin
...
Also known as gluten enteropathy or nontropical sprue
...




✓ GERD means gastroesophageal reflux disease
...




✓ IBS: Irritable bowel syndrome is a group of symptoms including diarrhea,
abdominal bloating, cramping, and constipation associated with stress
and tension (also known as spastic colon)
...
There are three primary ways physicians diagnose digestive diseases and conditions: X-rays, ultrasounds, and blood tests
...
That little pinprick
you feel when a needle is inserted into skin to draw blood is a small price to
pay for all that your doctor can discover just by looking at the results of your
blood tests
...
A wide variety of blood tests can be done
to diagnose gastrointestinal conditions and diseases, all of which look for
varying levels of enzymes, proteins, and other blood elements
...
Is always elevated with bone activity, so it is always high in
children who are still growing
...
pylori organisms, a bacteria that can be found in stomach lining, causing duodenal ulcer



✓ Occult blood test: Test to detect occult (hidden) blood in feces; also
called Hema-Check and Colo-Rec



✓ Protein: Elevated in liver disease
Some diagnostic procedures are a bit more invasive, such as an abdominocentesis (also called paracentesis), a surgical puncture to remove fluid from
abdominal cavity
...
Almost every part of the digestive system can be viewed with
the endoscope
...
The
endoscope can be inserted into a body opening (mouth or anus) or through a
small skin incision to view internal organs
...
How
cool is that?!?



✓ MRCP (Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography): Uses MRI
technique to obtain images of the bile and pancreatic ducts
...


Paging Dr
...
You will likely
be familiar with many of these terms, such as appendectomy, but some will be
brand-spanking new to you
...
Here are some of the most common:

Chapter 18: Feeding Time: The Gastrointestinal System


✓ Abdominoperineal resection: Surgical excision of colon and rectum, by
both abdominal and perineal approach



✓ Appendectomy: Surgical excision of appendix



✓ Cholecystectomy: Surgical excision of gallbladder



✓ Colectomy: Surgical excision of the colon or part of the colon



✓ Gastrectomy: Surgical excision of stomach



✓ LAGB (Laparoscopic adjustable gastric band): Inflatable device is
placed around the top portion of the stomach to treat obesity



✓ Polypectomy: Surgical excision of a polyp



✓ Transplantations (pancreas and liver): Diseased pancreas or liver is
removed or partially removed and replaced with a donor organ



✓ Uvulectomy: Surgical excision of uvula
Surgical repairs are next on the to-do list of procedures and surgeries
...
These are some of the most
common:



✓ Colostomy: Artificial opening into the colon through abdominal wall



✓ Gastrojejunostomy: Artificial opening between stomach and jejunum



✓ Gastrostomy: Artificial opening into stomach through abdominal wall;
this is a feeding method used when swallowing is not possible



✓ Herniorrhaphy: Suture of a hernia to repair

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✓ Ileostomy: Creation of artificial opening into ileum through abdominal
wall for passage of feces (used for Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, or
cancer)



✓ Jejunostomy: Creation of artificial opening in the jejunum

Terminology RX: Gastrointestinal
Pharmacology
Remember reading that you might need your antacids to get through this
chapter? Well, we weren’t kidding
...
And
most of them provide an added boost of calcium as well
...

Antacids with simethicone also relieve excess flatulence, if you need to avoid
any embarrassing outbursts in public
...
This medication relieves constipation
...

A doctor may prescribe medications that provide a little more kick, so to
speak:


✓ Activated charcoal: Used for its absorption powers; often used via nasogastric tube to assist with stomach pumping (drug overdose)



✓ Antibiotics: To treat Helicobacter pylori infections, diverticulosis, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s exacerbations, and traveler’s diarrhea



✓ Anticholinergics: To treat spasms of the GI system such as IBD, divericulitis, and even ulcers; effectively slow down peristalsis with a calming
effect



✓ Antiemetics: Control nausea and vomiting; often prescribed when chemotherapy or radiation is administered



✓ Bowel preparations and enemas: Bowel cleansers taken before barium
enema or bowel surgery



✓ Emetics: Used to induce vomiting; especially useful in cases of drug
overdose or ingested poisons



✓ H2 blockers: Used to treat gastric ulcers

Chapter 19

Gatekeepers of Health:
The Endocrine System
In This Chapter
▶ Discovering how your endocrine system works
▶ Determining root words, prefixes, and suffixes appropriate to this system
▶ Using terminology of the endocrine system to discuss common conditions and diseases
▶ Choosing the right terms to use when diagnosing problems

H

ormones — a word that strikes fear in the heart of every parent of a
tween or teenage child, even the steeliest mom or dad chaperoning the
middle school dance
...
It’s a frequent misconception that
hormones only affect teenagers who are finding their way to that first kiss
...

­
They keep our systems running and send important signals to our major
organs that dictate how they work
...
They get a little help from their
friends, the glands, who are kind enough to produce them, nurture them, and
then send the little guys on their way to the appropriate organs
...
It does this
by sending chemical messengers called hormones throughout the body via
the bloodstream
...
Slowly released hormones control organs from a distance
...
They are called
ductless, because they have no duct system to transport their secretions
...
They regulate
a variety of the functions of body organs
...


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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology


Endocrine: Take endo, which means “within” or “inner,” and add it to the Greek
krinein, which means “to separate
...
They are
unlike exocrine glands — such as the sebaceous glands in the skin — that
deliver secretions via ducts directly to the body organ needing them
...

The central glands, the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus, are located in
the brain
...
The pituitary and hypothalamus glands
work together to regulate body functions such as growth, salt and water balance, reproduction, and metabolism
...
The thyroid, parathyroids, adrenals, and pineal glands have only
one function: They produce hormones
...
The
pancreas is similar to other mixed function organs, such as the heart, liver,
kidneys, ovaries, and testes
...




Believe it or not, the heart secretes hormones — as if it doesn’t have enough
to do already
...
This hormone is released from the heart atria, whereas BNP (B-type
natriuretic peptide) is released from the ventricles
...

Figure 19-1 illustrates the endocrine system
...
These little messengers work like
diplomatic peacekeepers, so to speak
...

Because the individual parts of the endocrine system produce a variety of
hormones, we discuss them in the context of their “home bases” — with each
individual gland
...


Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System



Figure 19-1:
The endocrine
system
...
The hypothalamus secretes trophic hormones that stimulate
the pituitary gland to release other hormones
...

The anterior pituitary secretes seven hormones, messaged by hypothalamusreleased hormones
...




✓ Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), also called thyrotrophin, stimulates the thyroid gland to produce and secrete its own hormones, thyroxine and triiodothyronine
...




✓ Follicular-stimulating hormone (FSH) in the female is responsible for
the growth of the ovum (egg) in the ovaries and stimulates the secretion
of estrogen and progesterone
...
This is also known as a gonadotropic hormone, one
which influences the growth and hormone secretion of the ovaries in
females and testes in males
...
In the male, LH regulates testosterone secretion
...

The remaining two hormones do not stimulate production of other hormones,
­
so they are not tropic hormones
...

Melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH) influences the formation of melanin and
causes increased pigmentation in the skin
...

Antidiuretic hormone (ADH), also known as vasopressin, prevents excessive
loss of water
...
It also regulates the flow of milk from the mammary glands during breastfeeding
...
It is located on either side of the trachea, just
below a large piece of cartilage called the thyroid cartilage
...
The thyroid is made up of tiny sacs filled with a jellylike fluid called
colloid
...



The thyroid weighs only about one ounce
...
It is
included in the endocrine system because it
is ductless
...
It is located near the base
of the brain and secretes a substance called

melatonin
...
Calcification of the pineal gland
can occur and is used as a radiological marker
when x-rays of the brain are examined
...
These hormones are synthesized in the thyroid from iodine, which is picked up from the blood circulating through the
gland
...
Thyroid hormone aids cells in the uptake of oxygen and supports the body’s basal metabolic rate (BMR)
...
The
BMR also refers to your overall energy level, temperature control, skin and
hair condition, mood, energy level, and even the rate and effectiveness of
your cognitive processes
...
This results in a lower metabolic rate, heat loss, and poor physical and
mental development
...

The parathyroid glands are four small (about ½-inch) oval bodies that lie
on the back aspect of the thyroid gland, two on each side
...
This hormone mobilizes calcium
from bones into the bloodstream, where calcium is necessary for proper
functioning of body tissue
...



The adjustment of levels of calcium in the blood is a good example of the way
hormones control homeostasis, or equilibrium or consistency, of the body’s
internal environment
...
(We also discuss this gland in Chapter 18
...


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As an endocrine gland, the pancreas produces hormones — that is, in this
case, specialized cells in the pancreas produce hormones
...

Insulin is necessary in the bloodstream for the use and storage of blood
sugar and acts to decrease blood sugar levels, whereas glucagon acts to
increase them by instructing the liver to synthesize new glucose in a process
called gluconeogenesis
...
Each
gland consists of two parts, an outer portion called the adrenal cortex and
an inner portion called the adrenal medulla
...
The cortex secretes hormones
­
called steroids, which are complex chemicals derived from cholesterol
...

The adrenal cortex also secretes mineral corticoids, also known as mineralocorticoids
...
The main corticoid, aldosterone, is responsible for
electrolyte and water balance, affecting blood sodium concentration and
potassium
...
Cortisol, also called hydrocortisone, is a glucocorticoid hormone in that it increases the ability of cells to
make new sugar out of fat
...



Addison’s disease, a disease of the adrenal cortex, was named after Thomas
Addison, an English pathologist
...
Both hormones work in conjunction with the
sympathetic nervous system
...
They help the body
respond to crisis situations by increasing the heart rate, blood pressure,
blood glucose (sugar) level, and rate of blood clotting
...
A gamete is a sex cell
...


Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System

Endocrine abbreviations
Some common abbreviations associated with
the endocrine system include:
✓ ADA: American Diabetes Association
✓ BMR: Basal metabolic rate
✓ DI: Diabetes insipidus
✓ DM: Diabetes mellitus
✓ FBS: Fasting blood sugar

✓ GTT: Glucose tolerance test
✓ IDDM: Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus
(more commonly known as Type 1 Diabetes)
✓ NIDDM: Non-insulin-dependent diabetes
mellitus (More commonly known as Type 2
Diabetes)
✓ PRL: Prolactin

Estrogen is secreted by the ovaries and is necessary in the development of
secondary female sex characteristics (pubic hair and breast development, for
example)
...

Progesterone is released in the second half of a menstrual cycle by the corpus
luteum (empty egg sac) in the ovary
...
If fertilization doesn’t occur, secretion of progesterone stops, and
the menstrual cycle follows
...

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is secreted by the placenta when a
pregnancy occurs
...

Testosterone is secreted in the testes
...

The hormone is also present in women to some degree, and some believe it
increases female libido
...
If you consider these
glands the gatekeepers of the hormones they produce and send, you can consider prefixes and suffixes the gatekeepers of the root words
...
Table 19-1 shows some
prefixes and suffixes associated with the endocrine system:

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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
Table 19-1

Coming and Going: Endocrine Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefix

What It Means

Eu-

Normal

Ex-, exo-

Outside, outward

Hyper -

Excessive, above normal

Hypo-

Below normal

Pan-

All

Suffix

What It Means

-drome

Run, running

-emia

Blood condition

-genesis

Production

-ism

Condition

-tropin

Stimulating the function of

Next, in Table 19-2 we present the nitty-gritty of endocrine terminology
...


Table 19-2

Maintaining Balance: Endocrine Root Words

Suffix

What It Means

Acr/o

Extremities, height

Aden/o

Gland

Adren/o

Adrenal glands

Andr/o

Male

Calc/o

Calcium

Cortic/o

Cortex

Crin/o

To secrete

Dips/o

Thirst

Estr/o

Female

Galact/o

Milk

Gluc/o, glyc/o

Sugar

Gonad/o

Sex glands

Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System
Suffix

What It Means

Home/o

Sameness or unchanged

Immun/o

Safe

Kal/i

Potassium

Lact/o

Milk

Natr/o

Sodium

Pancreat/o

Pancreas

Parathyroid/o

Parathyroid gland

Pituitar/o

Pituitary gland

Radi/o

Radioactive

Somat/o

Body

Thyr/o thyroid/o

Thyroid gland

Toxic/o

Poison

Ur/o

Urine

It’s All Related: More Endocrine
Anatomical Terms
It is, without a doubt, incredibly vital that the components of the endocrine
system work in harmony because the system is a fairly complex collection
of glands that produce a variety of hormones
...

Here’s a closer look at even more aspects of this highly influential system
...
Though not hormones, these are vital products of this system,
and help keep the body functioning properly
...
”

Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System

Common Endocrine Conditions
Most conditions associated with the endocrine system present more than
just a common nuisance or annoyance
...
Effects like extreme
weight gain or weight loss, extreme height issues, and even renal (kidney)
failure are not uncommon when it comes to endocrine conditions
...
Many are also a result of a more serious endocrine disease, such as diabetes, covered in the next section
...
” Protrusion of the eyeball can be a symptom of hyperthyroidism,
which was originally described by Robert James Graves, an Irish physician
...

Next is our old friend, the parathyroid, with an odd mix of conditions affecting calcium and, of all things, your wrists
...
Remember that these
glands have one primary function: to produce hormones
...




✓ Adrenal virilism: Excessive output of adrenal androgens



✓ Adrenopathy: Disease of the adrenals
Now it’s time to talk about the pancreas, that double-dipper gland that is
involved in the inner workings of more than one system
...
They are



✓ Acidosis: Abnormal condition characterized by reduced alkalinity of the
blood and of the body tissues



✓ Hyperglycemia: Abnormally high sugar in the blood



✓ Hypoglycemia: Abnormally low sugar in the blood



✓ Pancreatitis: Inflammation of the pancreas
Conditions of the gonads can be troublesome and can cause some problematic side effects, such as heavy or irregular periods and ovarian cysts for
women and erectile dysfunction for men
...


Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System


✓ Gynecomastia: Excessive breast development in a male



✓ Hypergonadism: Excessive secretion of hormones by sex glands



✓ Hypogonadism: Deficient secretion of hormones by sex glands
Now, it’s time for the potpourri of conditions
...
It’s an endocrine grab bag!



✓ Diabetes insipidus: Insufficient secretion of the antidiuretic hormone
vasopressin; causes the kidney tubules to fail to reabsorb needed water
and salt



✓ Diabetic nephropathy: Destruction of kidneys, causing renal insufficiency requiring hemodialysis or renal transplantation



✓ Homeostasis: Tendency in an organ to return to equilibrium or constant
stable state



✓ Hyperkalemia: Excessive amounts of potassium in blood



✓ Hyponatremia: Deficient amount of sodium in the blood



✓ Hyperparathyroidism: A condition of excess parathyroid hormone
secretion, whether from tumor, genetic condition, or medication



✓ Ketoacidosis: A primary complication of diabetes mellitus; fats are
improperly burned leading to an accumulation of ketones in the body



✓ Polyuria: Excessive urination



✓ Polydipsia: Excessive thirst

Finding the Culprit: Endocrine
Diseases and Pathology
While, admittedly, no condition of the endocrine system is simple or without
side effects, the diseases we talk about in this section have especially serious
consequences
...
Not only does diabetes affect the function of the body, it greatly affects a person’s everyday habits
...
Basically, the patient must learn a whole new lifestyle
...

The official name of diabetes is Diabetes mellitus, which means there is a lack
of insulin secretion from the pancreas
...

It involves the destruction of the cells of the islets of Langerhans with
complete deficiency of insulin in the body
...




✓ Type 2 diabetes is also called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus
(NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes; are common factors
...
Treatment includes
diet, weight reduction, exercises, and if necessary, insulin or oral hypoglycemic drugs
...
Glucocorticoids
are produced in deficient amounts
...
Treatment consists of daily cortisone administration and intake
of salts
...
Hyperplasia of the adrenal cortex
results from excessive stimulation of the gland by ACTH
...




✓ Thyroid carcinoma is cancer of the thyroid gland
...
Good thing physicians can use some relatively straightforward
tests to evaluate the way the endocrine glands function
...
The professionals do the rest from there, running tests that
measure the following levels (among many other things): calcium, cortisol,
electrolytes, FSH, hGH, glucose, insulin, parathyroid hormones, T3, T4, testosterone, and TSH
...


Chapter 19: Gatekeepers of Health: The Endocrine System
Sometimes all the lab needs is a clean urine sample, so be prepared to pee
in a cup
...



Glucose comes from the Greek gleukos, meaning “sweetness
...
This test measures the glucose levels in the blood and urine in specimens taken 30 minutes,
1 hour, 2 hours, and 3 hours after ingestion of 100 g of glucose
...
Other
diagnostic tests for the endocrine system include the following:



✓ Estrogen receptor test: Determines whether hormonal treatment would
be useful in cancer treatment by measuring the response of the cancer
to estrogen



✓ Goetsch’s skin reaction: Test for hyperthyroidism involving reaction to
epinephrine injection, named for Emil Goetsch (1883–1963)



✓ Radioactive iodine uptake: Thyroid function evaluated by injecting
radioactive iodine and then measuring how much is removed from the
blood by the thyroid
Some clinical procedures associated with the endocrine system include:



✓ CT scan: Also known as computerized tomography or CAT scan
...




✓ Thyroid scan: In a thyroid scan, a radioactive compound is given and
localized in the thyroid gland
...




✓ Ultrasound: Pictures obtained from ultrasound waves can identify pancreatic, adrenal, and thyroid masses
...


Paging Dr
...
It is important to
note in this system that once an endocrine gland is surgically removed, usually for tumor or enlargement, hormone replacement is necessary
...

You should be able to discern what each of the following surgical terms
means by looking at the root and the suffix, which either means to remove or
to cut (as in an incision)
...
A robotic thyroidectomy, using
the da Vinci robotic machine, uses an under-the-arm approach, eliminating the
neck scar associated with thyroid removal
...

One of the big daddy diseases of the endocrine system is diabetes, which
affects millions of Americans
...
There are several types of insulin,
including rapid acting, immediate acting, long acting, and even mixtures of
more than one type
...
Insulin can also be administered in advanced cases
...
Sources of drugs and supplements used to treat thyroid
disease include desiccated beef or pork thyroid gland
...
Antithyroid drugs are used to treat hyperthyroidism
...

Finally, there are drugs used to treat the pituitary gland, most notably growth
hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy
...

Blood cells, hormones, and all sorts of worker bees run around all day (and
night!) making the company work better
...

The computer is a lot like your nervous system — it’s the hard-wiring that
controls all the little activities your body performs
...


How the Nervous System Works
The nervous system is the body’s built-in computer system, but it is far,
far more complex than any state-of-the-art computer
...
The body has more than 10 billion nerve cells whose function is to
coordinate its activities
...
We respond
to pain, danger, temperature, and touch as well, and we have memory, association, and discrimination
...


262

Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
The nervous system is made up of three subsystems
...




✓ The peripheral nervous system (PNS) is composed of cranial nerves that
extend from the brain and spinal nerves that extend from the spinal cord
...

The worker bees of the nervous system are called neurons
...

A nerve consists of a bundle of dendrites and axons
...
Axons carry impulses away from the cell
body
...

Figure 20-1 illustrates the nervous system
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Nervous System

The Central Nervous System
The central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord
...
The cranial nerves carry or transmit impulses between the
brain, the head, and the neck
...
The functions of
the spinal and cranial nerves are mainly voluntary, involving smell, taste,
sight, hearing, and muscle movement
...
It lies in the cranial cavity (within the skull)
...



Most brains weigh between 2
...
The size of the skull
offers only a general idea of the brain size, because the shape and thickness of
the skull varies
...
Nervous tissue covering the cerebrum is called the cerebral cortex
...




Cerebral hemispheres are the paired right and left halves of the cerebrum that
occupy most of the brain cavity
...

Thought, memory, judgment, and association all take place in the cerebrum
...
The outer surface of the cerebrum, the cerebral cortex, is made up of gray matter, and underneath this the
white matter forms the central part of the brain
...




✓ The occipital lobe (the back of each of the hemispheres) manages visual
perception, association, and visual memory
...




✓ The temporal lobe correlates auditory and visual memory as well as
­language development
...
These spaces
contain watery fluid that flows through the brain and around the spinal cord,
called the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
...
CSF can be withdrawn for diagnostic purposes
or for relief of pressure on the brain
...
The brainstem is a
stemlike portion of the brain that connects the brain to the spinal cord
...
The thalamus acts as a relay station for body sensations such as
pain, and the hypothalamus controls body temperature, sleep, appetite, and
the pituitary gland
...
This is also sometimes known as the reptilian brain
...


Spinal cord
The spinal cord passes through the vertebral canal from the medulla oblongata to the second lumbar vertebra
...
The cord carries all nerves that affect limbs and lower
body and is a passageway for impulses getting to and from the brain
...

Meninges are three layers of connective tissue membrane surrounding the
brain and spinal cord
...
The
second layer around the brain and spinal cord, the arachnoid membrane (arachnoid meaning “spiderlike”), is loosely attached to other meninges
...
A space between the fibers and the third membrane is
called the subarachnoid space, and it contains the cerebrospinal fluid
...


Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Nervous System


The Latin translation of dura mater means “hard mother,” whereas pia mater
means “soft mother
...
When translated into Latin, that changes to dura mater
...
Don’t confuse your mater with your matter
...
The peripheral nervous system then divides
into two parts: the somatic system and the autonomic system
...

All subdivisions connect in some way to perform their functions, but they all
remain part of the main nervous system
...
Then there are
groups of nerves that function involuntarily or automatically, without conscious control
...
This
is system made up of nerve fibers and carries impulses from the central nervous system to glands, the heart, blood vessels, and the involuntary muscles,
such as those found in the walls of the intestines and hollow organs — the
stomach and urinary bladder, for example
...
Afferent nerves carry impulses to the brain and spinal
cord from receptors like the skin, eyes, ears, and nose
...

The automatic nervous system is further divided into the sympathetic and
parasympathetic systems
...
The sympathetic nerves stimulate the body in times of stress
and crisis by increasing the heart rate, dilating airways to supply more
oxygen, and increasing blood pressure
...


Nervous Root Words
Now you know the major players in the nervous system
...
And like a supercomputer, one small glitch in how the neurons fire or how the messages are sent down the spinal cord can make the
difference between, say, walking and being confined to a wheelchair
...
Table 20-1 lists prefixes and suffixes
associated with the nervous system
...


Table 20-2

Nerve-Wracking Root Words

Root Word

What It Means

Algesi/o

Excessive sensitivity to pain

Cephal/o

Head

Cerebell/o

Cerebellum

Cerebr/o

Brain, cerebrum

Crani/o

Cranium (skull)

Dur/o

Dura mater

Ech/o

Sound

Encephal/o

Brain

Esthesi/o

Feeling, nervous, sensation

Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Nervous System
Root Word

What It Means

Gli/o

Glue, supportive tissues of the nervous system

Kinesi/o

Movement

Mening/o

Membrane

Meningi/o

Meninges

Ment/o, phren/o

Mind

Myel/o

Spinal cord

My/o

Muscle

Neur/o

Nerve

Phas/o

Speech

Pont/o

Pons

Psych/o

Mind

Radicul/o

Nerve root

Thalam/o

Thalamus

Ventricul/o

Ventricle

It’s All Related: More
Nerve-Wracking Terms
So, here it is: The potpourri, the mish-mash, the great melting pot of nervous
system terms
...
Let’s take a look at some of the pathological conditions pertaining to the central nervous system:


✓ Aphasia involves loss or impairment of the ability to speak
...
It can be
a rupture (hemorrhagic stroke) or obstruction of an artery (ischemic
stroke), producing headache, nausea, vomiting, possible coma, paralysis,
and aphasia
...




✓ Concussion is a temporary dysfunction after injury, usually clearing
within 24 hours
...




✓ Dysphasia is the condition of having difficulty speaking
...
It can manifest by
a grand mal seizure, with loss of consciousness, limb contractions, and
incontinence
...


The Greek epilepsia means “seizure” and is derived from epi meaning
“upon” and lambancia meaning “to seize
...
”
seizures (also called tonic-clonic seizures) are characGrand mal (large)
terized by severe convulsions and unconsciousness
...



✓ Hemiparesis is slight paralysis of half (either right or left side) of the
body
...




✓ Hydrocephalus refers to an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the ventricles of the brain
...
This is what is known as a brain death
...




✓ Myasthenia gravis is muscle weakness marked by progressive paralysis that can affect any muscle in the body, but mainly those of the face,
tongue, throat, and neck
...




✓ Neuritis is inflammation of a nerve
...




✓ Neurosis is an emotional disorder involving an ineffective way of coping
with anxiety
...
One of the most common examples is cerebral
palsy, a partial paralysis and lack of muscle coordination due to damage
to the cerebrum of a fetus during pregnancy
...




✓ Psychosis refers to a major mental disorder characterized by extreme
derangement, often accompanied by delusions and hallucinations
...
Blisters and pain spread in a bandlike pattern following the
route of peripheral nerves affected
...




✓ Syncope means fainting or sudden loss of consciousness
...




Paraplegia: The Greek para means “beside,” and plegia means “paralysis
...


Finding the Culprit: Nervous
Diseases and Pathology
The diseases and more serious pathological conditions of the nervous
system, again, have major implications for the way the rest of your body
functions
...
Here are just a few of them:


✓ Alzheimer’s disease: Brain disorder marked by deterioration in mental
capacity, caused by atrophy (wasting away) of the brain cells; develops gradually; early signs are loss of memory for recent events, and an
impairment of judgment and comprehension



✓ Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): Also called Lou Gehrig disease, a
progressive muscular atrophy or wasting away, caused by hardening of
nerve tissue in the spinal cord



✓ Guillain-Barre syndrome: Acute idiopathic polyneuritis, a rapid-in-onset,
progressive motor neuron paralysis of unknown cause



✓ Meningitis: Inflammation of the meninges caused by bacteria (bacterial
meningitis) or a virus (viral meningitis), an infection of subarachnoid
spaces



✓ Multiple sclerosis (MS): Destruction of the myelin sheath around nerve
fibers; scar tissue forms and prevents the conduction of nerve impulses,
causing muscle weakness and paralysis



✓ Parkinson’s disease: Degeneration of the nerves of the brain, occurring
in later life, leading to tremors, weakness of muscles, and slowness of
movement; a progressive condition that leads to muscle stiffness, shuffling gait (manner of walking), and forward-leaning posture

Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Nervous System

Tumors: Unwelcome guests
Tumors are another serious pathological issue
affecting the nervous system
...

A glioma occurs in the brain tissue, whereas a
meningioma arises from the meninges
...
Example of a glioma is
an astrocytoma, a tumor composed of astrocytes, star-shaped brain cells
...
Meningiomas are
most often benign and surrounded by a capsule, but may cause compression or distortion
on the brain
...
This
is a malignant tumor arising from nerve cells
...


Dr
...
It is also called parkinsonism, paralysis agitans, and shaking palsy
...
Because many of the following tests deal with delicate parts, such as the spinal cord and brain, physicians try to keep invasive measures to a minimum
...


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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology
And now, to the testing:


✓ Cerebral angiography: Contrast medium (such as dye) is injected into
an artery, and X-rays are taken of the blood vessel systems of the brain
...




✓ Cerebrospinal fluid analysis analyzes cell count, bacterial smears,
and cultures of the CSF when disease of the meninges or the brain is
suspected
...




✓ Electroencephalography (EEG) is a recording of the electrical activity of
the brain, performed to diagnose epilepsy, tumors, brain damage, and to
determine brain death
...




✓ Electronystagmography (ENG) is a group of tests to diagnose dizziness,
balance disorders, and evaluate brain function
...




✓ Lumbar or spinal puncture is when cerebrospinal fluid is withdrawn for
analysis from between two lumbar vertebrae
...




✓ Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a noninvasive technique producing cross-sectional and vertical images of soft tissues of the brain by use
of magnetic waves
...
It is used to visualize tumors,
edema, and to confirm multiple sclerosis
...




✓ Polysomnography is a technique to measure brain and body activity
during sleep
...


Chapter 20: Calming Down: The Nervous System

Paging Dr
...
Tumors of the spinal cord can also be removed
surgically
...
So, again, think reputable institution and not Craniotomy Mart
...
Let’s start getting inside your head, literally:


✓ Craniotomy: Surgical cutting into and opening the skull to gain access to
the brain tissue for surgery



✓ Decompression craniectomy: A portion of the cranium (skull) is
removed to relieve brain swelling following traumatic brain injury or a
stroke



✓ Hypophysectomy: Removal of the pituitary gland to treat tumors, specifically craniopharyngiomas



✓ Laminectomy: Excision of the posterior arch of a vertebra



✓ Neurectomy: Excision of a nerve



✓ Neuroplasty: Surgical repair of a nerve

Terminology RX: Nervous Pharmacology
Now it’s time to treat yourself to some drugs
...




✓ CNS stimulants are used to treat attention deficit disorders
...




✓ Hypnotics are used to treat sleeping disorders; examples include barbiturates and nonbarbiturates
...
”

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Part IV: Let’s Get Some Physiology Terminology

Part V

Name That Plumbing



Check out an online article on extra urinary terminology www
...
com/
extras/medicalterminology
...



✓ Relieving yourself with terminology about how the body
makes pee



✓ Getting down with the male and female reproductive
systems

Chapter 21

When You Got  ta Go: The
Urinary System
In This Chapter
▶ Figuring out how your urinary system works
▶ Checking out root words, prefixes, and suffixes appropriate to this system
▶ Using terminology of the urinary system to discuss common conditions and diseases
▶ Finding the right terms to use when diagnosing problems

Y

ou probably don’t give much thought to how your urinary plumbing
works every time you use the restroom
...

Welcome to the wonderful world of the urinary system! From kidneys to bladders, your body is full of all sorts of parts whose sole purpose is to clean
your system of toxins by way of creating urine
...
So the
next time you see someone with a license plate that reads, for example,
2PCME, you can bet it’s a urologist on the way to work
...


How the Urinary System Works
The urinary system is made up of the kidneys (you have two), ureters (also
two), bladder, and urethra (one)
...

So, how does that big steak dinner you ate last night turn into the next morning’s output in the form of urine? Well, food and oxygen combine in cells to
produce energy, a process called catabolism
...

Waste products in the form of gases (carbon dioxide) are removed from the
body by exhaling through the lungs
...
This kind
of waste is secreted as a soluble dissolved in water, a waste substance called
urine
...

Urea is formed in the liver from ammonia (which is, believe it or not, basically the same stuff you use to clean the kitchen)
...
The
kidneys remove waste products, producing urine that travels through each
ureter into the bladder
...
Magically (or so it might seem), your steak dinner has turned into pee!
Figure 21-1 shows the urinary system
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

Kidneys
You have two kidneys, unless you’ve had one removed
...
They are embedded in a cushion

Chapter 21: When You Gotta Go: The Urinary System
of adipose (fat) tissue and surrounded by connective tissue for support
...
The left
kidney is a little larger and sits a little higher than the right one
...
The
cortex contains millions of nephrons, and the medulla contains the collecting
tubules (small tubes)
...
The
nephron is the kidney’s functional and structural unit, or the “brains” of the
kidney
...



Hilum’s Latin meaning is “a small thing or a trifle
...

Glomeruli (singular glomerulus) are clusters of capillaries (small vessels)
at the entrance of each nephron
...
In the blood-filtering process, water and
solutes from the blood in the glomeruli pass through the capillaries and
the walls that make up the glomeruli into the tubules
...




The Greek word pyelos means “tub-shaped vessel,” which describes the shape
of each kidney
...
Normal
urine is translucent pale amber in color with the
distinctive odor you are familiar with
...
Of course, if your
naked eye can see blood in your urine, it’s time
to call your physician
...
Urine’s

normal specific gravity should be somewhere
between 1
...
025
...
Water is the usual standard in liquids
...
If urine shows
a specific gravity of 1
...
025 times heavier than water
...
This
means your pee is overly concentrated, which
may indicate a degree of dehydration
...
They are muscular tubes about
15–18 inches long, lined with mucous membrane, extending from the renal
pelvis down to the bladder
...
The urine enters the bladder in spurts via each
ureter every 10–30 seconds
...
The orifice works in sequence with
the peristaltic (wavelike) action that propels the urine through the ureter
...


Urinary bladder
The urinary bladder is a hollow, very elastic muscular sac in the pelvic cavity
...
It has two openings to receive the urine coming from each ureter
...
The trigone is
a triangular space at the base of the bladder where the ureters enter the
bladder
...

Contraction of the bladder and internal sphincter is an involuntary action,
whereas the action of the external sphincter is controlled by you
...


Urethra
The urethra is a membranous tube that carries urine from the bladder to
the exterior of the body
...
The external opening of the urethra is the urethral
meatus or urinary meatus
...
In the male, it is approximately 8 inches long
...

The male urethra carries both urine and reproductive organ secretions (see
Chapter 22)
...
That sure prevents unwanted
embarrassment during those tender moments
...
 oh, my!
As blood passes through the glomeruli of each
kidney, the process of forming urine begins
...
Glomerular walls
are thin to permit water, salt, sugar, and nitrogenous waste such as urea, creatinine, and uric
acid to filter out of the blood
...
This
cuplike structure is called Bowman’s capsule
...
Each Bowman’s capsule
is connected to a long twisted tube called a
renal tubule
...
By the time the filtrated

material reaches the end of the renal tubule,
the materials that the body needs to keep have
been reabsorbed
...
Thousands
of tubules deposit urine into the central renal
pelvis, a space that fills most of the medulla of
the kidney
...
The renal pelvis narrows into the ureter that carries the urine to the
urinary bladder, where it is temporarily stored
...




Catheter comes from the Greek catheter, meaning “a thing let down
...




Micturate comes from the Latin mictus, which means “a making of water
...
Be sure to note the spelling:
Micturition (expelling urine) is often misspelled as micturation
...
That’s
why you probably should not frequent swim-up bars on vacation
...


Urinary Root Words
Now it’s time to turn on the flow (pun entirely intended) of prefixes, suffixes,
and root words
...
Table 21-1 gets you started with
prefixes and suffixes
...
Table 21-2 is a list of the most
common root words and combining forms in the world of all things urinary
...
You have two ureters and one urethra
...
So few parts, yet so many possible things that can go
wrong
...

When you are dealing with common conditions, remember that inflammation is the arch nemesis of the urinary system
...
This results in infection and a great deal of discomfort
...
These more serious issues range from diseases that affect
kidney function to various varieties of cancer:


✓ CRF (chronic renal failure): When kidney function is not sufficient,
leading to dialysis or transplantation



✓ Cystocele: Protrusion or sagging of the bladder



✓ End-stage renal disease (ESRD): Chronic irreversible renal (kidney)
failure



✓ Epispadias: Congenital defect in which the urinary meatus is located
on the upper surface of penis; usually corrected surgically shortly after
birth



✓ Essential hypertension: High blood pressure without apparent cause



✓ Glomerulonephritis: Inflammation of kidney glomeruli caused by any
number of things, including connective tissue diseases like lupus, endocrine diseases like diabetes, or bacterial infection like untreated Group A
Betahemolytic Streptococcus



✓ Hydronephrosis: Water or fluid distention in the renal pelvis caused by
obstruction of the ureter



✓ Hydroureter: Distention of ureter with urine due to blockage



✓ Hypernephroma: Renal carcinoma in adults



✓ Hypospadias: Congenital defect in which the urinary meatus is located
on the under side of the penis; usually corrected surgically
...

Physicians can prescribe all kinds of tests to root out the problems that affect
your plumbing
...
These tests are part of a total urinalysis (microscopic analysis of
urine), also known as the UA, or blood screening process to evaluate adequate functioning of the urinary system:


✓ Addis count: Urine test to determine kidney disease; total volume measurement of urine output in 24-hour period is used to evaluate kidney function



✓ BUN (blood, urea, nitrogen): Measures amount of urea in the blood;
when kidney is diseased or fails, urea accumulates, leading to unconsciousness and death

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Part V: Name That Plumbing


✓ CCT (creatinine clearance test): Measures the ability of the kidney to
remove creatinine, a white crystallized compound, from the blood



✓ Phenylketonuria (PKU  ): Substance found in urine of newborns indicating congenital problems (routinely performed on newborns)



Excessive bilirubins can cause jaundice in newborns
...
These imaging procedures are, for the most
part, non-invasive with the exception of having to add contrast media (often a
dye) to the body so that problems show up on the x-ray
...
So, buck up, put

Chapter 21: When You Gotta Go: The Urinary System
on your big girl/big boy pants, and get over your fear of the scope
...
Terminology: Urinary
Surgeries and Procedures
A plethora of surgeries and procedures are available to help treat disorders
and diseases
...
Think of your surgeon as the master
plumber of human pipes
...
The most common conditions treated with
the surgical robot are ureteral strictures at the UPJ (ureteropelvic junction),
where the kidney and its ureter meet
...
Of a more
serious nature, the robotic technique can be used to perform a nephrectomy,
a partial nephrectomy, a cystectomy, and even a radical cystectomy that
involves creation of a urostomy (ileal conduit)
...


Chapter 21: When You Gotta Go: The Urinary System

Terminology RX: Urinary Pharmacology
The medications used most often in the treatment of urinary conditions and
diseases are used for lots of other bodily issues
...

Traditional antibiotics are typically used to treat urinary tract infections
...
coli organisms, the
common culprits in UTIs (urinary tract infections)
...

Though drinking a lot of cranberry juice is helpful when you have an uncomfortable UTI, it is not a panacea
...
Another type of drug
common in treating urinary tract infections is the family of sulfonamides
...
Drumroll, please 
...
Commit these
potpourri urinary words to memory, and you’ll
be the star of the doctor’s office:
✓ Anuria: Absence of urine
✓ Azotemia: Excessive urea and nitrogen in
the blood
✓ Azoturia: Excessive urea and nitrogen in
urine
✓ Catheter: A flexible tubelike device for
withdrawing or instilling fluid
✓ Diuresis: Increased excretion of urine
✓ Diuretic: An agent or medication used to
increase the amount of urine production
(water pill)
✓ Dysuria: Difficulty or painful urination
✓ Enuresis: Bedwetting
✓ Glycosuria: Sugar or glucose in urine

✓ Hematuria: Blood in urine
✓ Nephrologist: Physician who specializes in
treating kidney disease
✓ Nephrology: The study of the kidney, its
anatomy, and functions
✓ Nocturia: Night urination
✓ Oliguria: Scanty urination
✓ Polyuria: Excessive urination
✓ Pyuria: Pus in urine
✓ Urinary: Pertaining to urine
✓ Urologist: Physician who specializes in
treating diseases of the male and female
urinary system and male reproductive
system
✓ Urology: The study of the male and female
urinary system and male reproductive
system
✓ Urinary catheterization: Passage of a catheter through the urethra into the bladder to
withdraw urine

289

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Part V: Name That Plumbing


Diuretics, often taken for hypertension, make the kidneys work overtime
...
A diuretic increases the excretion of urine, putting the
entire urinary system into overdrive, which is not good for the kidneys or for
sodium and potassium levels
...

There are some common, everyday items that have diuretic effects, such as
the caffeine in your coffee or soda
...


You can’t create life without input from both the male and the female reproductive organs
...

Normally, we would say, “Ladies first,” but in this case, let’s start our reproductive discussion with the guys, who donate the “little soldiers” responsible
for egg fertilization
...
The male reproductive organs, or
gonads, are the testes
...
The ducts include the epididymides (singular: epididymis) vas deferens, ejaculatory ducts, and the urethra
...
The supporting structures
include the penis, scrotum, and spermatic cords
...
Each sperm is a microscopic
cell, measuring less than 1/100,000th the size of the female ovum
...
This tail region, called the flagellum,
is a hairlike structure that makes the sperm motile (able to move by itself),
resembling a tadpole
...
Only one
spermatozoon can penetrate a single egg and achieve fertilization
...



The male reproductive system produces 100 million sperm per day (that’s
a rate of 1,000 for every heartbeat), from puberty until death! The organs of
the male reproductive system are designed to produce and release billions of
spermatozoa throughout the male’s lifetime
...
Testosterone is necessary for the proper development of the male gonads from the fetal stage through adulthood, the testes
or testicles (singular: testis) and accessory organs of the testes, the prostate
gland, and seminal vesicles
...
The prostate gland and seminal vesicles secrete fluid to
ensure the sperm cells’ lubrication and viability (the ability to live)
...




Figure 22-1:
The male
reproductive
anatomy
...

The interior of a testis is composed of a large mass of narrow coiled tubules
called the seminiferous tubules
...
These tubules are the parenchymal tissue of the testis, meaning
they perform the essential work of the organ
...

These tubules come together and enter the head of the epididymis
...
The
scrotum lies between the thighs in order to expose the testes to a lower temperature than if they were enclosed within the body
...

Between the anus and the scrotum, at the floor of the pelvic cavity in the
male is the perineum, which is similar to the perineal region in the female
...
The spermatozoa become motile and move into the epididymis,
where they are stored
...
It stores sperm before ejaculation and secretes a portion of the seminal
fluid (semen)
...
3 cm in diameter and
2 feet long
...
It is the vas deferens that is cut or tied off when a male sterilization procedure, called a vasectomy, is performed
...
These vesicles secrete a thick
yellow substance, seminal fluid, which nourishes the sperm cells and forms
much of the volume of the ejaculated semen or seminal fluid
...
In the male, the genital orifice (opening) combines with
the urinary urethral opening
...

Cowper’s glands, or bulbourethral glands, are just below the prostate gland
and also secrete fluid into the urethra
...


Prostate
At the region where the vas deferens enters the urethra, and almost encircling the upper end of the urethra, is the prostate gland
...
This gland is also supplied with muscular tissue that aids in the
expulsion of sperm during ejaculation
...



Prostate comes from the Greek pro meaning “before
...


Penis
The penis is composed of three rounded masses of erectile tissue and at its
tip expands to form a soft, sensitive region called the glans penis
...
The penis contains the urethra that carries both seminal fluid
and urine
...


Male Reproductive Root Words
To really stretch a metaphor, as the human race needs both male and female
reproductive systems in order to survive by creating new life, the medical
terms associated with the male reproductive system need both prefixes and
suffixes to create new words
...


Chapter 22: Check the Plumbing: Male Reproductive System
Table 22-1

Making Word Babies: Male Reproductive
Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefix or Suffix
-ectomy

What It Means
Surgical removal of

-ism

State of

-itis

Inflammation

-megaly

Enlargement

-orrhea

Excessive discharge

-pexy

Surgical fixation

-plasty

Surgical repair of

Hydro-

Water, fluid

Trans-

Through, across, beyond

And now for the glue that holds these medical terms together
...


Table 22-2

Life Force: Male Reproductive System Root Words

Root Word
Andr/o

What It Means
Male

Balan/o

Glans penis

Cry/o

Cold

Crypt/o

Hidden

Epididym/o

Epididymis

Genit/o

Genitals, reproductive organs

Gonad/o

Gonads

Orch/o, orchi/o, orchid/o

Testis, testicle

Phall/o

Phallus, penis

Prostat/o

Prostate gland

Scrot/o

Scrotum

Sperm/o

Spermatozoon

Spermat/o

Spermatozoa

Test/o, testicul/o

Testis, testicle

Urethr/o

Urethra

Vas/o

Vessel or duct, vas deferens

Vesic/o

Bladder

Vesicul/o

Seminal vesicles

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Pathological Male Reproductive
Conditions
The makeup of the male reproductive system, with all its tubes and ducts,
can be complicated and subject to several types of conditions
...
Sexually
transmitted diseases (STDs) are very serious, highly contagious, and can
affect everything from your ability to conceive to your relationships with
future sexual partners
...
Here are the
usual suspects:


✓ AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is a sexually transmitted
disease by exchange of body fluids during a sexual act or with use of
contaminated needles and contaminated blood transfusion, affecting the
body’s immune system
...


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✓ Chlamydia, the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, is the causative
agent; includes diseases of the eye and genital tract
...
It can cause infertility in women if it spreads to the ovaries and
uterus and causes pelvic scarring secondary to the infection
...
Symptoms include reddening of the skin with small fluid-filled blisters and ulcers
...




✓ Gonorrhea is a contagious inflammation of the genital tract mucous
membranes due to infection with bacteria known as Gonococcus
...
Symptoms include dysuria (painful urination) and discharge
from the urethra
...
Penicillin is
the method of treatment
...

HIV infects T-cell helpers of the immune system, allowing for opportunistic infections like candidiasis, P
...




✓ Human papilloma virus (HPV) is a sexually transmitted disease causing benign or cancerous growths in male and female genitals (venereal
warts)
...




✓ Syphilis is a chronic infectious disease affecting any organ of the body
and is caused by a spiral-shaped bacteria known as Treponema pallidum
...
Infection can spread to internal
organs, and later stages include damage to brain, spinal cord, and heart
...
Penicillin is the
method of treatment
...
Males may have no symptoms or could develop urethritis (inflammation of the urethra), or prostate
enlargement
...




Ongoing data from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) demonstrate that gonorrheal infections have become resistant to fluoroquinolone
antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin
...
The most commonly recommended treatment is an
injection of a cephalosporin class of antibiotics called ceftriaxone
...
A venereal disease was
thought in ancient times to be one of the misfortunes of love
...
Though
there aren’t tons of laboratory tests and diagnostic procedures used for
this system, they remain important methods for helping men of all ages find
peace when it comes to issues of concern related to sexual health
...
This test is performed as part of fertility studies and also to establishment fertility status
...
It can also be performed following a vasectomy to assure that the procedure was successful
...
Analysis is also done at six weeks following vasectomy and again
at three months, to establish aspermia
...

A general viral culture tests for herpes and HIV, and is performed simply by
swabbing an open sore
...
Because the syphilis antigen stays in the
blood for a lifetime, it can have far-reaching effects
...
This is a prescreening mechanism for precancerous conditions of the prostate gland
...

Prostate carcinoma is both serious and scary
...
It can be emotionally and mentally devastating,
because we associate our sexual identities with our sexual systems
...
Prostate cancer is one of the most
common cancers associated with the male reproductive system
...
Terminology: Male Reproductive
Surgeries and Procedures
You’ve found the problem, now it’s time to call the plumber, or, in this case,
the urologist
...


Terminology RX: Male Reproductive
Pharmacology
Believe it or not, there is more to male reproductive pharmacology that that
infamous pill to aid in erectile dysfunction
...
Vasodilators like this keep things cooking in the bedroom
for those who are experiencing difficulty
...

Finally, on a more serious note, amebicides, antifungal agents, as well as good
old penicillin, are used to treat the STD family of bacteria
...


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Everything you ever wanted to know about male
reproductive vocabulary but were afraid to ask
For the final push of this chapter, we spill some
additional vocabulary words you may need to
know to speak definitively about the male reproductive system, while refreshing your memory
on a few others
...

No matter how you slice it, it all adds up to
ouch!

Say What? Male Terminology
Tongue Twisters
Every now and then, you come across a medical term that leaves you saying,
“Whaaat?!?” Let’s face it: Some medical terms just sound plain strange and
they can present a real challenge when it comes to pronouncing them
...
But if you want to impress
your medical friends at the office holiday party, keep these tongue-twisting
gems in your back pocket
...
Once 10–20 million sperm have been collected,
the semen is used for fertilization with the partner’s egg
...




✓ Prostatolithotomy: Incision into the prostate to facilitate removal of a
stone or calculus
...
Here are some conditions and disorders that will make the burliest of guys cringe:



✓ Brodie: Black spot on glans penis; an indication of gangrene
...




✓ Pitres: Hypoesthesia of the scrotum and testes in neurosyphilis
...




✓ Rocher: In torsion of a testis
...


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Chapter 23

A Life Force: The Female
Reproductive System
In This Chapter
▶ Checking out how the female reproductive system works
▶ Rooting out root words, prefixes, and suffixes appropriate to this system
▶ Using female reproductive system terminology to discuss common conditions and

diseases

▶ Pinpointing the right terms to use when diagnosing problems

I

f you thought the male reproductive system was complicated, you ain’t
seen nothin’ yet, baby! Not only is the female system the other half of the
reproductive puzzle that helps create a human life, it is also the vessel that
helps sustain that little life in the nine months prior to birth
...

That’s a lot of pressure to put on one system — create life, sustain new life,
and nurture new life
...


How the Female Reproductive
System Works
The female reproductive system produces the female reproductive cell, or
sex cell, secretes the hormones estrogen and progesterone, and provides the
conditions to establish a pregnancy, together with providing a safe place for
the pregnancy to develop and grow
...
Reproduction is achieved by the union of the female reproductive
cell, an ovum, and the male reproductive cell, a spermatozoon (or sperm for
short), resulting in fertilization
...
Obstetrics is the specialty dealing with care of the
female during pregnancy and delivery of the newborn, including the 6–8-week
period following delivery
...
Each sex cell, also called a gamete, is a specialized cell, containing half
the number of chromosomes (23) of a normal body cell (46)
...

This combination provides a full normal complement of hereditary material
...


Figure 23-1:
The female
reproductive
system
...
They are held in place and connected to the uterus by
the broad and ovarian ligaments
...
They also
produce and secrete the sex hormones, estrogen and progesterone
...
Progesterone is produced in the corpus luteum of the ovary
and in the placenta in order to support and nurture a fertilized ovum
...
Each of these
follicles contains an ovum
...
The ruptured follicle fills with
blood and yellow material and becomes a corpus luteum
...
The fallopian tubes and ovaries are
called the adnexa, or accessory structures of the uterus
...


Fallopian tubes
The fallopian tubes lead from each ovary to the uterus
...
The tube is lined with small hairs that,
through their motion, sweep the ovum in a process that takes approximately
five days to allow that ovum to pass through the fallopian tube
...
If intercourse has taken place near the time of ovulation, and no contraception is
used, sperm cells will be in the fallopian tube when the ovum passes through
...



Fallopian tubes are named after Italian anatomist Gabriele Falloppio (1523–
1562)
...
We sure
wouldn’t want to be his kid
...

Figure 23-2 shows the menstrual cycle
...



Illustration by Kathryn Born

Uterus
When fertilization occurs anytime between puberty and menopause, the
fertilized ovum will grow and develop in the uterus
...

The uterus is a muscular organ located between the bladder and the rectum
...
The upper rounded portion of the
uterus is called the fundus, and the large central portion is called the corpus
or body
...
The epithelial mucosa of the uterus is more commonly called the endometrium
...
The narrow lower portion of the
uterus is called the cervix, meaning “neck
...


Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System

Vagina
The vagina is a muscular tube approximately 6 inches long and lined with
mucous membrane
...

The clitoris is situated in front of the vaginal opening and the urethral meatus
...

Bartholin’s glands are two small glands on each side of the vaginal opening
...



Bartholin’s gland is named after Caspar Thomeson Bartholin, a Danish anatomist
(1655–1738)
...

This may be torn during the process of childbirth in a vaginal delivery
...
This incision
is called an episiotomy
...
The labia majora are the outer lips of the vagina, and the
labia minora are the smaller inner lips
...
The clitoris and Bartholin’s
glands are also part of the vulva
...
They are mammary,
or milk-producing glands, composed of fatty
tissue, lactiferous or milk-carrying ducts, and
sinus cavities, which carry milk to the opening or nipple
...

During a pregnancy, hormones from the ovaries and placenta stimulate gland tissue in the
breasts to their full development
...


There are two hormones involved in milk production: oxytocin and prolactin
...
Oxytocin stimulates the uterus to contract, inducing parturition
...
It also reacts
on the breasts to stimulate the release of milk
...

The act of sucking promotes prolactin production, which in turn, promotes further milk
production
...
Separately, they don’t make much
sense
...
In this case, of course,
it’s a word and not a baby
...


Table 23-1


Half of the Puzzle: Female Reproductive
Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefix

What It Means

Ante-

Before

Dys-

Painful, difficult

Endo-

Within

Hydro-

Water

Intra-

Within

Multi-

Many

Neo-

New

Nulli-

None

Peri-

Around

Primi-

First

Secundi-

Second

Suffix

What It Means

-algia

Pain

-arche

Beginning

-cyesis

Pregnancy

-ectomy

Surgical removal of

-itis

Inflammation

-optosis

Sagging

-orrhaphy

Suture

-orrhea

Discharge, flow

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System
Prefix

What It Means

-oscopy

Visual examination

-otomy

Incision into

-parous

Bearing, bringing forth

-plasty

Surgical repair

-rrhagia

Burst forth, excessive flow

-salpinx

Fallopian tube

-tocia

Labor

By adding in the root words and combining forms, you start to create your
own little word babies
...


Table 23-2 Life-Giving Roots of the Female Reproductive System
Root Word

What It Means

Amni/o

Amnion

Cephal/o

Head

Cervic/o

Cervix/neck

Chori/o

Chorion

Colp/o

Vagina

Culd/o

Retrouterine pouch (cul-de-sac)

Cyes/o, cyes/i

Pregnancy

Embry/o

Embryo

Endometri/o

Endometrium

Episi/o

Vulva

Fet/o

Fetus

Fimbri/o

Fimbria

Galact/o

Milk

Genit/o

Genitalia

Gonad/o

Ovaries
(continued)

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Part V: Name That Plumbing
Table 23-2 (continued)
Root Word

What It Means

Gravida

Pregnancy

Gynec/o, gyn/o

Woman, female

Hyster/o

Uterus

Lact/o

Milk

Lapar/o

Abdomen

Mamm/o, mast/o

Breast

Men/o

Menstruation

Metr/o, metr/io

Uterus

Mult/i

Many

My/o

Muscle

Myometri/o

Myometrium

Nat/o, nat/i

Birth

Null/i

None

Olig/o

Scanty

Omphal/o, umbilic/o

Umbilicus, navel

Oophor/o

Ovary

Ov/o, ov/i, ovul/o

Egg, ovum

Papill/o

Nipple

Pelv/i, pelv/o

Pelvis

Perine/o

Perineum

Prim/i

First

Pseud/o

False

Puerper/o

Childbirth

Salping/o

Fallopian tube

Umbilic/o

Umbilicus, navel

Uter/o

Uterus

Vagin/o

Vagina

Vulv/o

Vulva

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System

Full circle: The mysteries of the 28-day
menstrual cycle revealed
What actually happens on a monthly basis once
menstruation begins?
At puberty the beginning of menstruation is
called menarche, which can begin as early as
age 9 or as late as 15 or 16
...

✓ Days 6–13, postmenstrual period: When
the menstrual period has ended, the lining
of the uterus begins to repair itself as the
hormone estrogen is released by the maturing graafian follicle (developing egg sac)
...

✓ Days 15–28, premenstrual period: The
empty graafian follicle fills with a yellow
material and becomes known as a corpus
luteum
...
The hormones stimulate
buildup of the lining of the uterus in preparation for a fertilized ovum
...
The
fall in hormonal levels leads to the breakdown of the uterine endometrium, and a
new menstrual cycle begins, bringing the
cycle back to day 1
...
The corpus
luteum continues to produce progesterone
and estrogen, which supports the vascular and
muscular development of the uterus lining
...
The placenta produces its own
hormone as it develops in the uterus, called
human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)
...
When you pee on a
pregnancy test stick, this is the hormone that
makes that little plus sign appear
...
In the following section, we provide a diverse
array of both anatomical and clinical words that will keep you in the know
regarding this system
...
If
you’ll be spending any time in an OB’s office, whether as an employee or
patient, these are some handy terms to know:



✓ Amnion: Membrane enveloping the fetus



✓ Antepartum: Before birth, in relation to the mother



✓ Chorion: Outermost extraembryonic membrane enveloping the fetus



✓ Congenital anomaly: An abnormality or defect present at birth



✓ Ectopic: Occurring away from a normal position



✓ Ectopic pregnancy: Pregnancy occurring in the fallopian tube



✓ Embryo: The product of conception up to the eight-week period of
gestation



✓ Fetus: The embryo from second month of pregnancy to delivery

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System


✓ Galactorrhea: Discharge of milk from the breast



✓ Gestation: Period of time from fertilization to birth — in a human
pregnancy, approximately 40 weeks



✓ Gravida: A pregnant female



✓ Hyperemesis gravidarum: Excessive vomiting during pregnancy



✓ Intrapartum: During labor and delivery, in relation to the mother



✓ Lochia: The vaginal discharge after childbirth



✓ Meconium: First stool of the newborn



✓ Multigravida: Female who has been pregnant two or more times



✓ Multipara: Female who has given birth to viable offspring two or
more times



✓ Neonate: A newborn infant from birth to four weeks of age



✓ Neonatologist: A physician specializing in neonatology



✓ Neonatology: The study, diagnosis, and treatment of disorders of the
newborn infant up to one month of age



✓ Nulligravida: Female who has never been pregnant



✓ Nullipara: Female who has never given birth



✓ Parturition: The act of giving birth



✓ Postnatal: Period after birth, referring to the newborn



✓ Postpartum: After delivery, in relation to the mother



✓ Prenatal: Period before birth, referring to the fetus



✓ Primigravida: Female who is pregnant for the first time



✓ Primipara: Female who has given birth to viable offspring for the first
time



✓ Pseudocyesis: False pregnancy



✓ Puerpera: Female who has just given birth



✓ Puerperium: Period after delivery until reproductive organs return to
normal, about six to eight weeks



✓ Quickening: Female’s first awareness of movement of fetus within the
uterus, usually felt at 16–20 weeks’ gestation



✓ Secundigravida: Female pregnant for the second time



✓ Secundipara: Female who has given birth to viable offspring for the
second time

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Part V: Name That Plumbing

Baby steps: OB abbreviations
Things happen fast in the birthing room, so
OB physicians and their employees like to
use abbreviations to keep the chatting to a
minimum
...
With all
that equipment, there’s bound to be a fair share of technical difficulties ranging from the downright annoying (yeast infections) to the long-lasting (loss of
hormones due to menopause):


✓ Amenorrhea: Absence of menstrual period



✓ Cervicitis: Inflammation of the cervix



✓ Dysmenorrhea: Painful menstrual periods



✓ Dyspareunia: Painful or difficult intercourse



✓ Endometritis: Inflammation of endometrium



✓ Gynatresia (atresia): Absence of normal body opening (an occlusion);
gynatresia usually refers to part of female genital tract, the vagina



✓ HRT (hormone replacement therapy): Replacement of hormones to
treat menopausal symptoms (also called ERT: estrogen replacement
therapy)



✓ Hydrosalpinx: Water in fallopian tube



✓ Mastitis: Inflammation of the breast occurring during breastfeeding,
usually bacterial in nature

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System


✓ Menometrorrhagia: Excessive menstrual flow both during and between
menstrual periods



✓ Menorrhagia: Heavy menstrual period



✓ Oophoritis: Inflammation of ovary



✓ PMD (premenstrual dysphoric syndrome): Used to describe severe
premenstrual syndrome, which results in a week or two of hormonally
triggered clinical depression every month



✓ PMS (premenstrual syndrome): Cyclic disorder involving physical and
emotional symptoms in the premenstrual phase (just before menses
phase); symptoms include fatigue, bloating, tension, and irritability



✓ Vaginitis: Inflammation of the vagina
Some conditions of the female reproductive system are specifically related to
pregnancy and childbirth:



✓ Abruptio placentae: Premature separation of placenta from the uterine
wall causing bleeding and a rigid, painful abdomen and requiring emergency cesarean section



✓ Dystocia: Difficult or abnormal labor



✓ Eclampsia: Severe complication of pregnancy involving convulsions
and/or coma in a pregnant female



✓ Ectopic pregnancy: Pregnancy occurring outside the uterus (tubal
pregnancy) requiring emergency surgery



✓ Intrauterine fetal death: Fetal death occurring before expected date of
birth



✓ Missed abortion: A fetal demise has occurred but miscarriage by expulsion has not taken place



✓ Placenta previa: Placenta develops in the lower uterine wall and may
cover the cervix, blocking the birth canal and requiring a C-section; can
be diagnosed by ultrasound



✓ Preeclampsia: Condition during pregnancy or shortly after delivery with
high blood pressure, edema (swelling), and protein in the urine



✓ Salpingocyesis: Pregnancy occurring in fallopian tube or ectopic
pregnancy



✓ Spontaneous abortion: A miscarriage, usually occurring before 12 weeks
of gestation



✓ Stillbirth: Fetal death in utero, occurring before delivery

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Part V: Name That Plumbing

Finding the Culprit: Female Reproductive
Diseases and Pathology
It’s important to note that the following conditions not only influence the
work of the body, but also the overall mental health of the women they affect
...
For many women, issues
involving reproductive health often have long-lasting effects on feminine and
sexual identity
...



✓ Adenomyosis refers to endometrium growth in the myometrium of the
uterus
...
Tumors may
spread to skin, chest wall, and lymph nodes located in axilla; they
may metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body, including bones,
lungs, liver, brain, and even ovaries
...




✓ Carcinoma of cervix means malignant tumor of the cervix
...




✓ Endometrial carcinoma refers to malignant tumor of the uterus
...




✓ Fibrocystic disease is a disease of the breast
...




✓ Fibroid (leiomyoma) is a benign tumor in the uterus composed of
fibrous tissue and muscle, may cause pelvic pain or menorrhagia
...
It may be cystic or solid
...


Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System


✓ PID (pelvic inflammatory disease) refers to inflammation of female
pelvic organs
...




✓ Stein-Leventhal syndrome (polycystic ovary syndrome) refers to adrenal
gland malfunction resulting in facial hair (hirsutism), weight gain, and
infrequent, abnormal, or absent menstrual periods
...

Staphylococcus aureus is the bacterial culprit
...


Testing, Testing: Female Reproductive
Radiology and Diagnostic Tests
Thank goodness for modern medicine
...
Most women will be familiar with some of these yearly (or
more often for some) tests that, although causing a bit of discomfort at the
time, give great comfort in the long run by offering diagnoses for many serious conditions
...




✓ Pregnancy test: Detects the presence of hCG in the urine or blood to
diagnose pregnancy



✓ Sonohysterography: Recording uterus by sound waves (ultrasound)

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Part V: Name That Plumbing

Paging Dr
...

Obviously, many of these surgeries and procedures involve a woman’s ability
to conceive, whether it be putting an end to that ability through a hysterectomy or helping improve a woman’s chances to get pregnant
...



✓ Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy before the embryo or the
fetus is able to exist on its own
...
A therapeutic or induced abortion is a deliberate termination of
pregnancy and is most commonly performed during the first trimester
between 8 and 12 weeks
...




✓ Cervical conization is a cone-shaped biopsy of tissue from the mouth of
cervix for diagnostic purposes
...




✓ Colposcopy is a magnified examination of the cervix, vagina, and vulva,
using a colposcope used — to detect abnormalities
...




✓ D & C means dilatation and curettage
...
Curettage (scraping) is accomplished next by using a curette or metal loop to remove samples of the
lining of the uterus for diagnostic purposes
...




✓ Endometrial ablation destroys (ablates) the endometrium (uterine
lining) to treat dysfunctional or abnormal uterine bleeding
...

Many women opt for a permanent form of sterilization once they make
the decision to not have more (or any) children
...
Women are typically

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System
encouraged to choose the sterilization method best for their individual lifestyles and physical makeup
...
This procedure can be done
laparoscopically or through an abdominal incision:


✓ Laparoscopic method: Laparoscope is inserted through the abdominal
wall, and tubes can be sealed off with high-frequency spark (cauterization) or burning
...




✓ Tubal clipping: Filshie clip is used to clip off tubes, similar to banding
method
...
Follicle-stimulating hormones (FSH) and
luteinizing hormones (LH) help stimulate the
development of the ovum and ovulation
...

During pregnancy the higher levels of estrogen and progesterone affect the pituitary
gland itself, by shedding off its production of
FSH and LH
...
This interaction, when hormones act
to shut off the production of another group of
hormones, is called negative feedback
...
The birth control pill contains
varying amounts of estrogen and progesterone,
causing the hormone levels to rise in the blood
...
Ovulation cannot
occur without these, and a woman cannot
become pregnant
...

The IUD is a small coil placed inside the uterus
by a physician
...
A diaphragm is
a rubber cup-shaped device inserted over the
outside of the cervix before intercourse to prevent sperm from entering the cervix and moving
into the uterus to the fallopian tubes
...
Menopause is the gradual ending of
the menstrual cycle and the natural process
resulting from normal aging of the ovaries
...
” Premature menopause
can occur before age 35, whereas delayed
menopause can occur after age 55
...
Menopause is considered complete
when menstrual periods have been absent for
at least 12 months
...

Many surgical procedures for the female reproductive system require the
repair or removal of some parts of the system
...
Keep in mind that breasts are considered part of this
system as well, so in the following list you see terms referring to the surgical
removal or repair of these body parts as well
...



✓ Myomectomy: Surgical removal of a leiomyoma (fibroid) from the uterus



✓ Oophorectomy: Surgical removal of an ovary



✓ Salpingectomy: Surgical removal of a fallopian tube



✓ Salpingo-oophorectomy (or oophoro-salpingectomy): Removal of fallopian tube and ovary



✓ Subtotal hysterectomy: Surgical removal of uterus only (cervix left
behind)



✓ Total hysterectomy: Surgical removal of uterus and cervix

Chapter 23: A Life Force: The Female Reproductive System


✓ Vaginal hysterectomy: Uterus and cervix surgically removed via
vagina



✓ Vaginoplasty: Surgical repair of the vagina



✓ Vulvectomy: Surgical removal of the vulva



The surgical robot can be used in procedures involving cervical and endometrial cancers, ovarian tumors, uterine fibroids, and pelvic prolapse
...
The da Vinci robot can perform a robotic myomectomy, allowing a future pregnancy to follow the surgery
...
It’s also referred
to as artificial rupture of membranes
...
Fluid is used for the assessment of fetal
health and maturity
...
It is performed early in pregnancy at 16 weeks to determine fetal abnormalities such as Down syndrome, spina bifida, or to
determine the sex of the fetus
...




✓ Cesarean section: This is surgical removal of the fetus through the
abdominal and uterine walls
...




✓ Episiotomy: Refers to incision of vulva or perineum
...




✓ Obstetrical ultrasound: Ultrasound of the abdomen and pelvis determine fetal development, growth rate, and estimate fetal age, weight, and
maturity
...




✓ Salpingectomy: Removal of a fallopian tube in order to remove an ectopic
pregnancy
...
Many women hoping
to have children who are experiencing difficulties are very thankful to have
drugs to treat fertility, such as clomiphene citrate
...
Though these drugs are not panaceas, they
have helped countless women reach their goals of becoming mothers
...
In these cases, uterine relaxants are used to stop premature labor in pregnancy
...

Then there are the “antis
...
(For more information about STDs that affect
both woman and men, see Chapter 22
...

G for Gravida: Number of pregnancies
T for Term: Number of pregnancies carried to term
P for Para: Number of pregnancies resulting in a liveborn infant
A for Abortus: Number of pregnancies ending in abortion, as the result of
either a miscarriage or therapeutic abortion
L for Living: Number of living children
For example:
G3-T3-P3-A0-L3 means 3 pregnancies, carried to term, resulting in 3 live
term infants who are still alive and well
...

G3-T3-P4-A0-L4 means 3 pregnancies, carried to term, resulting in 4 live
term infants, who are still alive and well, indicating that one pregnancy
resulted in twins



The due date or EDC in a pregnancy is easily calculated by knowing the beginning date of last menstrual period (LMP)
...
Here’s an example
...
Count back three months:
February 25, January 25, December 25
...
dummies
...


In this part 
...
Medical terminology references, that is
...


Medterms
...
com, this medical reference includes over 16,000
terms
...
The site also offers a word of the day and earns its street cred
by the fact that its doctors authored the latest edition of the Webster’s New
World Medical Dictionary
...
com
This website is a good all-arounder, featuring a fully searchable list of medical
abbreviations and a medical dictionary
...


328

Part VI: The Part of Tens

webMD
...
com to provide the latest cutting-edge medical news and information
...
(Once you start, you’ll do it
every time you feel a sniffle coming on
...
Connect to blogs, message boards, expert forums, and even
health quizzes, games, and slideshows
...
Not only does this dictionary have all the terms you need to know, it
offers full illustrations to help get the point across
...
dorlands
...


Mosby’s Medical Dictionary
This monster is well over 2,000 pages chocked full of medical terminology
know-how
...
Not exactly something you
want to carry around in your book bag, but definitely handy to keep on your
bookshelf
...
Mosby’s is famous
for the number of colored pictures, which tends to be helpful for the novice
medical terminology student
...
From illustrated flashcards and skillbuilding tools to guides to idioms, terms, and phrases, Stedman’s is a onestop shop for all things terminology
...
stedmans
...


Chapter 24: Ten Essential Medical Terminology References

Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary
Taber’s website at www
...
com says that it is the “world’s best-selling
health-sciences dictionary,” offering over 56,000 terms
...
Taber’s other vital stats include: 700 full-color images, 2,500 audio pronunciations, customized bookmarking, “sounds like” search, and topic crosslinking
...
That’s a nice little bit of
handholding
...
This book does not list definitions, just the words (thus the title), but
this book is a savior when looking for a difficult or hard-to-spell term when
looking in a standard medical dictionary could take hours if the spelling is
not known
...
Within
each medical specialty are headings that further break down the choices
and make the hunt easier
...
com
This is a cool and fun website
...
You know,
like “I before E, except after C, or when sounding like A as in neighbor and
weigh
...
This is a whole website dedicated to the concept
...
You
can search the database (of course) or browse by systems and charts
...
The coolest part is: It’s totally free and not-for-profit
...


329

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Part VI: The Part of Tens

Medical Terminology Systems
Quick Study Guide
The good folks at Bar Charts, Inc
...
Voila!
Enter the Quick Study Guide, also known as the giant laminated poster
...

This one is super handy and hits the terminology highlights
...
barcharts
...
Who needs wallpaper when you can hang these babies up?

Chapter 25

Ten or So Useful Mnemonic
Devices
In This Chapter
▶ Using simple phrasing devices to remember medical terms
▶ Discovering quick ways to recall simple system functions

A

mnemonic device is any kind of simple way to remember something,
such as lists of terms, functions, or definitions
...
In fact, the sillier the
better in most cases
...
It’s the weird and wacky that often stands out in our minds
...
medicalmnemonics
...


Cranial Nerves
Don’t strain your cranium to recall those cranial nerves
...


332

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Lung Lobe Numbers
To remember the location of the different sides of the lungs, think tri and bi
...

The bicuspid and bi-lobed lung live on the left side of your body
...
To remember the size of the thyroid, just remember that
breasts are bigger in women than men, so the thyroid is bigger in women
...


Scalp Layers
The layers of your scalp actually spell SCALP
...
You can
remember the muscles of the rotator cuff by remembering SITS
...

Note: If a baseball pitcher injures these muscles, he SITS out for the rest of
the game
...
Think M and Facial
...

The facial nerve is in charge of facial expression
...
PerONeal is on the legs
...
He gets a tough break here, but he’s the best candidate for
remembering the path sperm takes to exit the male body
...
When
you’re trying to think of these bones, consider that Some Lovers Try Positions
That They Can’t Handle:
Scaphoid
Lunate
Triquetrum
Pisiform
Trapezium
Trapezoid
Capitate
Hamate

Cranial Bones
Since cranial bones help make up your skull, keep skulls in mind to recall the
bones and think “Old Parents Forget to Eat Spinach”:
Occipital
Parietal
Frontal
Temporal
Ethmoid
Sphenoid

Chapter 26

Ten Sets of Terminology
Tongue-Twisting Diseases
In This Chapter
▶ Encountering some of the most challenging disease terms
▶ Practicing pronunciations to sound like a pro

O

h, you know you want more
...
Speci­
fically, terms that twist the tongue and stand apart as some of the most
challenging to write and pronounce
...
There is something for everyone here, from ten body system groups
you’ve come to know and love
...

Then there’s Kummell-Verneuil, which is compression fracture of vertebra
occurring a few weeks after a spinal injury
...
Kind of makes you wonder why there was no Dr
...
There is
de Quervain, or painful synovitis caused by narrowing of the tendon sheath
of the muscles in the thumb
...

And taking the award for disease that sounds most like a character from Clue
is Munchmeyer, also known as progressive ossifying polymyositis
...


Integumentary
Your largest organ is a breeding ground for tongue-twisting diseases
...
Those who suffer from this are highly at risk for cancer
or human papillomavirus (HPV)
...
Going along
with the two doctors for the price of one disease names, we also have:


✓ Arndt-Gottron: Skin condition with diffuse thickening of skin with underlying papules (scleromyxedema)



✓ Hailey-Hailey (familial benign pemphigus): Genetic disorder causing
blisters to form on the skin



✓ Oppenheim-Urbach: Rare skin condition seen in diabetic patients and
prevalent in families, presenting with red and yellow papules usually on
lower limbs



✓ Quinquaud (decalvaris folliculitis): Inflammation of hair follicles, resulting in loss of hair, red scalp, and pustules around hair follicles

Sensory
These sensory disease names sound like they came straight out of an IKEA
catalog
...

What about Riga-Fede? It’s a rare oral (mouth) condition seen in newborns
with ulceration of tongue and inner lower lip
...
Fun, right?

Cardiovascular and Lymphatic
The heart is no stranger to oddly named diseases
...
There is bird breeder’s lung (also called pigeon
breeder’s lung or bird fancier’s lung), which is a type of hypersensitive pneumonitis (lung inflammation) caused by exposure to bird droppings
...
It is fatal if
left untreated and is common in AIDS patients because of their suppressed
immune systems
...
It is named
after the Danish island where early cases occurred and is characterized
by sharp chest pain and difficulty breathing
...


Gastrointestinal
The names for these gastrointestinal diseases are almost as complicated as the
diseases themselves
...
Take Cruveilhier
...


337

338

Part VI: The Part of Tens
Another example is Hirschsprung, a congenital malformation of the enteric
nervous system causing bowel obstruction in the newborn that is often associated with Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome)
...
You can also blame MEN for what ails this system
...
This is a
group of disorders affecting the body’s network of hormone-producing glands
with tumors in parathyroid, pituitary, and pancreas
...


Nervous
The nervous system brings even more wacky names to the tongue twister
party
...

Please also welcome Spielmeyer-Vogt, an inherited disorder that affects the
nervous system in children with developing vision loss, motor disabilities,
speech difficulties, and seizures
...
These tumors can become cancerous
...
Most of these diseases just sound funny
...
Take, for example, Munk
...


Chapter 26: Ten Sets of Terminology Tongue-Twisting Diseases
There is also Marion’s, a congenital obstruction of the posterior urethra or
bladder neck stenosis, and Cacchi-Ricci (medullary sponge kidney), a congenital disorder of kidneys characterized by cystic dilatation of collecting
tubules in one or both kidneys
...
Named after Priapus, the Roman God of male potency,
priapism is definitely a reason to call your doctor
...
Ouch
...
There is Chiari-Frommel, a rare endocrine disease affecting postpartum
women featuring an overproduction of breast milk, lack of ovulation, and
absence of menstrual period
...
Finally, there is Breisky, a progressive disease that
involves wasting of the vulva (progressive weakness and deterioration) in
postmenopausal women caused by hormone imbalance
...
Many of
these can be applied to more than one body system
...
Prefixes
and suffixes are modifiers or adjectives that alter the meaning of the root
word, in the same ways as regular English terms
...
The prefix
tells you something about what you are going to find inside the word itself
...

You might recognize many of the prefixes associated with medical terminology, because they have similar meanings in regular, everyday vernacular
...
If something is atypical, for example,
it is not typical
...
The moral of this story
is that prefixes aren’t just window dressing
...


Prefixes
A-/ or an-/
Bi- or binBrady
Dys-

Without or lack of
Two
Slow
Difficult, painful, uncomfortable

342

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
EndoEpiEuEx-, exoHemiHydroHyperHypoInterIntraNulliPanParaParaPer
PeriPolioPoly
PrimiQuadriReRetroSecundiSubTachyTrans-

Within
On, over, upon
Normal
Outside, outward
Half
Water
Excessive, above normal
Below normal
Between
Within
None
All
Abnormal
Beside, beyond, around
Through
Around
Gray
Many, much
First
Four
Back
Backward, back
Second
Below, under
Fast
Through, across, beyond

Suffixes
Next we have the omega, the last call of the word scene — the suffix
...
Whereas the prefix gives you a clue into what to expect in a word’s
meaning, the suffix pulls no punches and tells you what is happening with a
specific body part or system
...

Suffixes operate in the medical world much as they do in the land of standard
English
...
For example, the suffix -meter

Appendix: Prefixes and Suffixes
simply indicates an instrument used to measure something, just as it does in
English (like odometer)
...
”
-algia
-apheresis
-ar, -ary
-ase
-blast
-capnia
-centesis
-chalasis
-continence
-cusis
-cyesis
-cytosis
-desis
-drome
-ectasis
-ectomy
-emia
-flux
-gen
-genesis
-globin
-globulin
-gram
-graph
-graphy
-iasis
-ician
-ism
-itis
-lithiasis
-lysis
-lytic
-malacia
-megaly
-metrist
-metry
-ology
-oma

Pain
Removal
Pertaining to
Enzyme
Immature
Carbon dioxide
Surgical puncture with needle to aspirate fluid
Relaxation
To stop
Hearing
Pregnancy
Condition of cells
Surgical fixation
Run, running
Stretching or expansion
Surgical removal or excision
A blood condition
Flow
Producing
Production
Protein
Protein
Picture or finished record
Instrument used to record
Process of recording
Abnormal condition
One who
State of or condition
Inflammation
Calculus or stone
Loosening, separating
Destruction or breakdown
Softening
Enlargement
Specialist in the measurement of
Process of measuring
Study of
Tumor or mass

343

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Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
-opia
-opsy
-optosis
-orrhaphy
-orrhea
-ory
-oscopy
-ostomy
-otomy
-oxia
-para
-paresis
-pathy
-pepsia
-pexy
-phagia
-phonia
-phoresis
-plasty
-plegia
-pnea
-poiesis
-prandial
-ptosis
-rrhagia
-rrhaphy
-rrhea
-salpinx
-schisis
-scope
-scopy
-stasis
-stenosis
-thenia
-thorax
-tocia
-tresia
-tripsy
-tropia
-uria
-us

Vision (condition)
View of, viewing
Sagging
Surgical fixation or suturing
Flow, excessive discharge
Pertaining to
Visual examination of internal cavity using a scope
Creation of an artificial opening
Process of cutting into
Oxygen
To bear, live birth
Slight paralysis
Disease
Digestion
Surgical fixation
Eating or swallowing
Sound
Carrying/transmission
Surgical repair or reconstruction
Paralysis
Breathing
Formation
Meal
Drooping, sagging, prolapse
Burst forth, excessive flow
Suture repair
Discharge or flow
Fallopian tube
Cleft or splitting
Instrument used to visually examine
Visual examination
Stop or control
Narrowing or constricting
Lack of strength
Chest
Labor
Opening
Surgical crushing
To turn
Urination, urine
Condition

Index
•A•
abbreviation
cardiovascular system, 206
of measurement, 40–41
obstetric, 316
respiratory system, 215
sensory system, 168, 170
uppercase and lowercase, 41
abdomen, 21, 23, 63, 76, 81
abdominal cavity, 98
abdominal muscles, 144
abdominocentesis, 52
abdominoplasty, 52, 74, 165
abduction, 62
aberrant, 42
ablation, 41
abscess, 221
access, 41
acetabulum, 23, 63
acidosis, 256
acne, 160–161
acromegaly, 255
acromium, 23
acronyms
abbreviations, 41
common, 32
etymology example, 17
misinterpreted, 32
acrophobia, 73
Addison’s disease, 258
adduction, 62
adenoiditis, 221
adipocyte cell, 96
adrenal conditions, 256
adrenal gland, 23, 63
adrenal virilsim, 256
adrenals, 250
adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), 248
adrenopathy, 256
adult respiratory distress syndrome
(ARDS), 222

afferent, 41
against medical advice (AMA), 32
ageusia, 179
AIDS and HIV, 204
air sac, 23, 63
alopecia, 160
Alzheimer’s disease, 34, 270
AMA (against medical advice), 32
AMA (American Medical Association), 32
amenorrhoea, 61
American Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 16
amniocentesis, 74
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),
150, 270
anal fistula, 239
anatomical planes, 100–102
anatomical position, 102, 105
anatomy
description of, 95
medical terminology in terms of, 9–10
systems of the body, 109–111
anecdote, 41
anemia, 73, 199, 202
aneurysm, 200
angina pectoris, 200
angioplasty, 208
ankle, 22
ankylosing spondylitis, 133
anorexia, 238
anosmia, 179
anovulatory, 61
ANS (automatic nervous system), 11
anthracosis, 220
antidote, 41
antiglobulin test, 205
anti-inflammatory, 63
antonyms, 33–34
anuresis, 42
anuria, 289
anus, 23, 26, 63, 79
aorta, 23, 112
aortic semilunar valve, 190

346

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Apgar score, 34
aphagia, 236
aphasia, 268
aphthous stomatitis, 235
aplastic anemia, 202
apnea, 73
apparent, 42
appendectomy, 14, 52, 74
appendicitis, 52, 239
Aristotle, 16–17
arm, 20, 64
arm muscles, 143
armpit, 20
Arndt-Gottron disease, 336
arterial hypertension, 201
arterial system, 190
arteries, 190–191
arteriole, 23, 63
artery, 63, 76
arthritis, 51, 69, 133–134
arthrocentesis, 135
arthrogram, 135
arthropathy, 51
arthroplasty, 51, 136
arthroscopy, 135
asbestosis, 220
ascites, 237
atelectasis, 221
athlete’s foot, 161
atrium, 23, 63, 83, 189
aural, 42
auricular region, 103
autologous, 62
autonomic nervous system (ANS), 11, 262
axilla, 20
axillary region, 103
axis, 41
azotemia, 289
azoturia, 289

•B•
back, 21, 33, 81
back muscles, 144
bacteria, 64
bacterial analysis, 163
bacterial endocarditis, 201

bicuspid valve, 190
bilateral, 61
bile, 24, 64
bile duct, 24, 64, 83
biology, 95
bird breeder’s lungs, 337
birth, 25, 66, 79
black, 25, 66, 83
bladder, 24, 27, 64, 68, 77, 83
bleeding time, 205
blepharoplasty, 165
blood, 10, 25, 65, 77, 83, 192–193
blood vessels, 190–191
blue, 24, 64, 83
body
anatomical planes, 100–102
branches of science that cover, 95–96
cavities, 98–100, 107
prefixes, 61–62
regions, 102–105
root words related to, 99
suffixes pertaining to, 99–100
body system, 96
bone densitometry, 135
bone marrow, 25, 66, 78, 87, 122
bone scan, 135
bones, 26, 67, 87, 128–130
...
See cardiovascular
system
circumferential, 61
cirrhosis, 240
claustrophobia, 73
clavicle, 64
clavicular region, 103
cleft palate, 235
closed fracture, 133
closed reduction fracture, 133
coagulation time, 205
coccygeal region, 104
cold, 64, 76

347

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Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Colles’ fracture, 123
colon, 24, 64, 76, 87, 232
colonic polyposis, 237
color, 24, 64
colostomy, 53, 73
coma, 268–269
combining form, 8, 20, 57, 129–130, 217
...
See gastrointestinal system
dilation, 71
directional terms, 100–102
discreet, 42
discrete, 42
diseases
cardiovascular system, 200–203, 337
endocrine system, 257–258, 338
female reproductive system, 318–319
gastrointestinal system, 239–240, 337–338
integumentary system, 161–163, 336
lymphatic system, 200–203, 337
male reproductive system, 297–299
muscular system, 150, 336
nervous system, 270–271, 338
reproductive system, 338–339
respiratory system, 221–223, 337
sensory system, 180–181, 336–337
skeletal system, 134–135, 335–336
urinary system, 284–285, 338–339
dislocation, 132
dissection, 62
diuresis, 289
diuretic, 289
diuretics, 290
diverticula, 238
diverticulitis, 239
Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary,
16, 328
dorsal region, 104
Down syndrome, 34
drug, 26, 67
dry, 27, 68
Duchenne muscular dystrophy, 336
ducts, 293
duodenal ulcer, 237
duodenum, 24, 65, 77
dupuytren’s contracture, 150
dwarfism, 255
dyscrasia, 199
dysfunctional, 61
dysgeusia, 179
dysosmia, 179
dyspepsia, 236
dysphagia, 42, 73, 236
dysphasia, 42, 235, 268
dyspnea, 73
dysuria, 289

•E•
Eales disease, 337
eardrum, 25, 27, 66, 68
ears
abbreviations associated with, 170
anatomy, 171
deafness, 172
inner, 172
middle, 172
organ of equilibrium or balance, 173
outer, 171
eating, 72
eating disorders, 238
ecchymosis, 160
ECT (electroconvulsive therapy), 32
ECT (enteric-coated tablet), 32
ECT (euglobulin clot test), 32
ecthyma, 161
eczema, 42, 161
edema, 221
edentulous, 236
efferent, 41
effusion, 42
eiphysis, 123
elbow, 21
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), 32
electrolysis, 165
embolism, 199, 221
embryology, 95
embryonic stage, 95
emesis, 236
endocardium, 189
endocervix, 61
endocrine system
adrenal conditions, 256
adrenals, 250
body function-related terms, 254
conditions, 255–257
described, 10–11, 97, 114–115, 245–246
diseases, 257–258, 338
gonads, 250–251
hormone-related terms, 253–254
hormones, 246
pancreas, 249–250
pancreas conditions, 256
parathyroid conditions, 256

349

350

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
endocrine system (continued)
pathology, 257–258
pharmacology, 260
pineal gland, 249
pituitary and hypothalamus, 247–248
prefixes, 252
radiology and diagnostic tests, 258–259
root words, 251–253
suffixes, 252
surgeries and procedures, 259–260
thyroid, 248–249
view, 247
endocscope, 53
endoscopic procedures, 242
endoscopy, 53
enlargement, 71
enteric-coated tablet (ECT), 32
enteritis, 239
enuresis, 42, 289
epicardium, 189
epidermis, 154–155
epilepsy, 269
epithelial cell, 96
epithelial tissue, 97
eponym, 16–17, 34–35
erect position, 102
eructation, 236
erysipelas, 161
erythrocyte sedimentation rate, 205
erythrocytes, 50, 73
erythrocytosis, 50
esophageal varices, 236
esophagitis, 236
esophagus, 24, 65, 77, 230
esotropia, 179
ethanol, 42
ethenyl, 42
etymology, 8, 17
euglobulin clot test (ECT), 32
euthyroid, 50, 255
exemia, 42
exocervix, 61
exophthalmos, 255
exotropia, 179
exterior root words, 20–22, 81–82
external respiration, 211–212
eyelash, 20–21, 81
eyelid, 20–21, 64, 81

eyes
abbreviations associated with, 168
inner, 169
internal structure view, 168
lens, 167–168
orbit, 167
outer, 170
pupil, 167
retina, 167

•F•
face, 21
face lift, 165
face muscles, 143
face nerves, 333
facial bones, 124–125
fallopian tube, 26, 67, 80, 84, 307
fast, 33
fat, 23, 25, 66
fat cell, 96
fatty degeneration, 63
fear, 20
febrile, 50
fecal, 42
feet, 22, 82, 127
female, 24, 65, 77
female reproductive system
breasts, 309
common terms, 313–315
conditions, 316–317
described, 12, 305–306
diseases and pathology, 318–319
fallopian tubes, 307
hormones, 321
illustration, 306
menopause, 316–317
menstruation cycle, 308, 313
obstetric abbreviations, 316
obstetrical-related terms, 314–315
ovaries, 307
pharmacology, 324
prefixes, 310–311
radiology and diagnostic tests, 319
root words, 310–312
suffixes, 310–311
surgeries and procedures, 320–323

Index
uterus, 308
vagina, 309
femoropopliteal bypass, 208
femur, 17
fibers, 24, 65
fibromyalgia, 149
fingernails, 157
fingers, 21
fissure, 160
flanges, 43
flank, 81
flat bones, 123
flatus, 238
flesh, 26, 67, 80
fluoroscopy, 135
follicular-stimulating hormone (FSH), 248
foot bones, 127
fractures, 132–133
front, 33
frontal lobe, 263
frontal plane, 100, 106
fungal testing, 163
furuncle, 160

•G•
gallbladder, 24, 64, 76, 83, 231
gallstones, 237
gamete (sex) cell, 96
gangrene, 161
gastric ulcer, 237
gastritis, 51, 237
gastro, 51
gastrodynia, 51, 73, 237
gastroenteritis, 239
gastroesophageal reflux disease, 240
gastrointestinal system
described, 10, 97, 113–114
digestion process conditions, 236
diseases, 239–240, 337–338
eating disorders, 238
endoscopic procedures, 242
esophagus, 230
functions of, 227–228
gallbladder, 231
gallstone conditions, 237
inflammation, 239–240
intestines, 231–232

large and small intestine conditions,
237–238
liver, 231
mouth and pharynx, 228–230
organs, 229
pancreas, 231
pathology, 239–240
pharmacology, 244
prefixes, 233
radiology and diagnostic tests, 240–242
root words, 233–235
specialist treated conditions, 235–236
stomach, 230
stomach-related conditions, 236–237
suffixes, 233
surgeries and procedures, 242–244
gastropathy, 51
genupectoral position, 102
gigantism, 255
gingivitis, 236
glands, 23, 63, 83, 156–157, 194
glans penis, 23, 64
glaucoma, 179
Gleason grade, 34
glycosuria, 289
goiter, 255
gonads, 250–251
gouty arthritis, 133
graft, 43
graph, 43
Grave’s disease, 255
gray matter, 26
Greek origins, 17
greenstick fracture, 133
groin, 21, 81
growth hormone (hGH), 248
growth of development, 72
growth plate, 123
Guillain-Barre syndrome, 270
gums in mouth, 21, 81
gynecomastia, 257

•H•
Hailey-Hailey disease, 336
hair, 22, 157
halitosis, 236
hand, 21, 83

351

352

Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
hardening, 72
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, 255
head, 20–21, 33, 64, 81
head and face muscles, 143
hearing, 23, 64, 76, 177
heart
...
See also muscular
system
muscle cell, 96
muscle tissue, 97
muscular system
common terms, 152
conditions, 149
described, 98, 139–140
diseases and pathology, 150, 336
muscle classes, 140–141
muscle movement, 148–149
muscle types, 141
radiology and testing, 151
root words, 147
suffixes, 148
superficial muscles, 142–147
surgeries and procedures, 151–152
tendons, 142
musculoskeletal system, 109–110
myalgia, 74
myasthenia gravis, 269
myocardium, 189
myoparalysis, 149
myorrhaphy, 74
myorrhexis, 74
myotonia, 149
myringitis, 180
myxedema, 256

•N•
nails, 21, 66, 68, 82, 157
nasal region, 103
nasoplasty, 74
nausea, 237
neck, 21–22, 64, 81
neck muscles, 143
necrotizing fascitis, 162
neoplasia, 63
neoplasm, 63
nephrologist, 289
nephrology, 289
nephrosis, 74
nerve, 25, 66, 79, 87
nerve cell, 96
nerve tissue, 97
nervous system
central nervous system, 263–265
common terms, 267–268
described, 11, 116, 261
diseases, 270–271, 338
illustration, 262
pathological conditions, 268–270
pathology, 270–271
peripheral nervous system, 265
pharmacology, 273
prefixes, 266
radiology and diagnostic tests, 271–272
root words, 265–267
subsystems, 262
suffixes, 266
surgeries and procedures, 273
neuralgia, 269
neuritis, 51, 269
neuroma, 269
neuropathy, 51, 70
neuroplasty, 51
neurosis, 269
nevus, 163
new, 66
nipple, 22
nocturia, 289
nose, 21–22, 66, 82, 173, 212–213
nucleide, 43
nuclide, 43
nystagmus, 180

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Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition

•O•
oblation, 41
obstetric abbreviations, 316
obstetrical-related terms, 314–315
occipital lobe, 263
occipital region, 103
oligomenorrhea, 61
oliguria, 50, 61, 289
-oma suffixes, 70
oophorectomy, 53
oophoritis, 53
oophorosalpingectomy, 54
open (compound) fracture, 133
open reduction, 133
Oppenheim-Urbach disease, 336
oral, 42
orbital region, 104
organic term, 13
orifice, 68
orthopnea, 74
Osgood-Schlatter condition, 335
osmesis, 179
osseous tissue, 122
osteal, 43
osteoarthritis, 134
osteology, 123–124
osteopathy, 70
osteopenia, 74
osteotomy, 74
ostial, 43
otalgia, 180
other, different, 25
otitis externa, 180
otitis media, 180
outer ear, 171
outer eye, 170
ovary, 26, 67, 79, 307
oxygen, blood, 10

•P•
pain, 71
palpation, 43
palpitation, 43
palsy, 269
pancreas, 67, 231, 249–250, 256

pancreatitis, 239, 256
panhypopituitarism, 255
papule, 160
paralysis, 72
paraovarian, 61
parathyroid, 256
parietal lobe, 264
Parkinson, James, 16, 271
Parkinson’s disease, 16, 35, 270–271
parotid, 42
patch skin test, 164
pathological conditions, 82–84
pathology
cardiovascular system, 200–203
description of, 96
endocrine systems, 257–258
female reproductive system, 318–319
gastrointestinal system, 239–240
integumentary system, 161–163
lymphatic system, 200–203
male reproductive system, 297–299
muscular system, 150
nervous system, 270–271
respiratory system, 221–222
sensory system, 180–181
skeletal system, 134–135
urinary system, 284–285
-pathy suffix, 70
pectoral region, 104
pelvic cavity, 98, 107
pelvis, 22, 26, 67, 82, 126
pelvis muscles, 145
pemphigoid, 162
Pendred disorder, 336
penis, 23, 64, 294
perception
...
See also female
reproductive system; male
reproductive system
described, 98, 116–118
diseases, 338–339
functions, 12
research lab related words, 63
respiratory system
abbreviated words associated with, 215
body part terms, 218–219
bronchi, 214
cellular respiration, 212
combining forms, 217
common terms, 219
conditions, 220–221
described, 98, 112–113
diseases, 221–223, 337
external respiration, 211–212

Index
internal respiration, 212
larynx, 213
lungs, 214–215
nose, 212–213
pathology, 221–223
pharmacology, 226
pharynx, 213
prefixes, 216
radiology and diagnostic tests, 223–224
respiratory-related health issues, 218
root words, 215–217
structures, 212
suffixes, 216
surgeries and procedures, 225
trachea, 213
retina, 167
retinal displacement, 180
Reye’s syndrome, 271
rheumatic heart disease, 202
rheumatoid arthritis, 134
rhinitis, 221
rhinoplasty, 74
rhytidectomy, 165
rib, 24, 64, 67, 79
Rickets, 134–135
Riga-Fede condition, 336
right atrium, 111
right lower quadrant (RLQ), 103
right upper quadrant (RUQ), 103
right ventricle, 111
roof of mouth, 26, 67
root words
body structure, 99
breaking words into, 91–94
cardiovascular system, 195–196
combining word parts, 49
defined, 8, 14, 19
defining, 87–88
endocrine system, 251–253
exterior of body, 20–22, 81–82
female reproductive system, 310–312
gastrointestinal system, 233–235
integumentary system, 158–159
interior of body, 23–27, 75–79
lymphatic system, 196–197
male reproductive system, 294–295
muscular system, 147
nervous system, 265–267
pathological conditions, 82–84

prefixes, 63–68
respiratory system, 215–217
sensory system, 174–177
skeletal system, 128–130
urinary system, 281–283
rosacea, 162
roseola, 162
rotator cuff, 332
Rougnon-Heberden disease, 337
rupture, 72
RUQ (right upper quadrant), 103

•S•
sacral region, 104
sacrum, 26, 67
sagittal plane, 100, 106
salpingectomy, 53
salpingogram, 53
salpingography, 53
salpingo-oophorectomy, 54
Salter-Harris system, 123
same, alike, 25
scabies, 162
scalp layers, 332
scapula, 26, 67
scleredema, 44
scleroderma, 44, 162
sclerotherapy, 164
sebaceous glands, 110, 156–157
seborrheic keratosis, 163
semantics, 27
sensorineural deafness, 172
sensory system
common terms associated with, 177–179
conditions, 179–180
described, 98, 110–111
diseases, 180–181, 336–337
ears, 170–173
eyes, 167–170
hearing suffixes, 177
listening root words, 176
mouth, 173
nose, 173
pathology, 180–181
pharmacology, 183
prefixes, 176
radiology and diagnostics tests, 181–182
root words, 174–177

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Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition
sensory system (continued)
smell, taste, and touch forms, 174
suffixes, 176
surgeries and procedures, 182–183
touch receptor, 174
septum, 67
serous otitis media, 180
sesamoid bones, 123
shingles, 269
short bones, 123
shoulder muscles, 143
sickle-cell anemia, 202
sight, 21, 82
sigmoid, 67
silent sounds, pronunciation, 46–47
silicosis, 220
single-photon emission computerized
tomography (SPECT), 135
sinuses, 212–213
skeletal muscle, 141
skeletal system
appendicular skeleton, 126–127
axial skeleton, 124–126
bone-related combining forms, 129
bones and osteology, 123–124
common conditions and terms, 132–134
described, 121–123
diseases, 134–135, 335–336
front view, 122
joint-related combining forms, 130
Kohler-Pellegrini-Stieda condition, 335
Kummell-Verneuil fracture, 335
Osgood-Schlatter condition, 335
pathology, 134–135
radiology, 135
root words, 128–130
surgeries and procedures, 135–137
terms associated with, 130–132
tests, 135
skin, 21, 24, 64–65, 81, 153–157
skin biopsy, 164
skin cell, 96
skin scratch test, 164
skull, 21, 64
sleep apnea, 222
Sloane’s Medical World Book, 5th Edition, 329
slow, 33
small, 71
smell, 173–174

smooth muscle, 141
softening, 71
sound-alike words, 41–44
special senses system, 98
spermatozoa, 67, 291–292
Spielmeyer-Vogt disease, 338
spina bifida, 271
spinal cavity, 98, 107
spinal cord, 25, 66, 78, 104, 116, 264–265
spinal nerves, 115
spleen, 26, 68, 80
splenomegaly, 74
spongy bone, 124
sprain, 132
steatorrhea, 238
Stedman’s Medical Dictionary and
Flashcards for Health Professional and
Nursing Illustrated, 5th Edition, 328
sternal region, 104
sternum, 26, 68
stomach, 24, 65, 77, 230
stone, 25, 66, 78
strabismus, 180
striated muscle, 141
subcostal, 62
subcutaneous layer, 155
subdural hematoma, 270
sublingual, 236
submental region, 104
subumbilical, 62
sudoriferous glands, 156–157
suffixes
body structure, 99–100
body-related words, 73–74
breaking words into, 91–94
combining word parts, 49
common types, 29–30, 69–73, 342–344
defined, 8, 19, 57
defining, 88–89
doctor’s office and hospital-related
words, 74
endocrine system, 252
female reproductive system, 310–311
gastrointestinal system, 233
hearing, 177
integumentary system, 159
male reproductive system, 295
muscular system, 148
nervous system, 266

Index
pronunciation, 48–49, 52–53
real-world terms, 89–90
respiratory system, 216
sensory systems, 176
urinary system, 282
sugar, 24, 65, 77
superficial muscles, 142–147
supine position, 102
suppurative otitis media, 180
supraclavicular region, 104
surgeries
cardiovascular system, 206–207
endocrine system, 259–260
female reproductive system, 320–323
gastrointestinal system, 242–244
integumentary system, 164–165
male reproductive system, 300–303
muscular system, 151–152
nervous system, 273
respiratory system, 225
sensory system, 182–183
skeletal system, 135–137
urinary system, 287–288
surgical fusion or binding, 71
surgical puncture, 71
sweat, 25, 65
sweat glands, 156–157
syncope, 270
systole, 193

•T•
Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary, 329
tachyarrhythmia, 62
tachycardia, 62
tail, 33
taste, 174
tears, 25, 65, 78
teeth, 21, 82
telangiectasis, 162
temporal lobe, 264
tendinopathy, 149
tendon, 26, 68, 80, 139–140
tendonitis, 149
tendons, 142
tennis elbow, 149
tenosynovitis, 149
testes, 293

testis, 26, 67–68, 79–80
tests
endocrine system, 258–259
female reproductive system, 319
gastrointestinal system, 240–242
integumentary system, 163
lymphatic system, 204–205
male reproductive system, 299–300
muscular system, 151
nervous system, 271–272
respiratory system, 223–224
sensory system, 181–182
skeletal system, 135
urinary system, 285–287
tetany, 256
thigh muscles, 145
thoracic cavity, 98
thoracic region, 104
thorax, 22, 125–126
throat, 67
thrombolysis, 200
thymus, 27, 68
thyroid, 248–249, 332
thyroid carcinoma, 258
thyroid gland, 27, 68
thyroiditis, 256
thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), 248
thyromegaly, 255
tinea, 162
tinnitus, 180
tissue, 25, 65, 78, 97
toes, 21
tongue, 21, 66, 81
tonsillitis, 14, 69, 221
tonsils, 27, 68, 80
tooth, 66
touch forms, 174
touch receptor, 174
trachea, 27, 68, 213
tracheitis, 221
tracheotomy, 74
transient global amnesia, 270
transient ischemic attack (TIA), 271
transverse plane, 100, 106
treatment, 25, 65
tricuspid valve, 190
tumor, 20, 271
tympanitis, 180

361

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Medical Terminology For Dummies, 2nd Edition

•U•
ulcer, 237
ulcerative colitis, 239
umbilicus, 21
upper extremities, appendicular skeleton,
126–127
upper respiratory tract, 222
urea, 11
ureter, 27, 68, 80, 84, 280
ureteritis, 283
urethra, 27, 68, 80, 84, 280–281, 294
urethritis, 283
urethropexy, 74
urinary catheterization, 289
urinary system
conditions, 283, 289
described, 116–118, 277–278
diseases, 284–285, 338–339
diuretics, 290
filtration, reabsorption, and secretion, 281
functions, 11
illustration, 278
kidneys, 278–279
pathology, 284–285
pharmacology, 289
prefixes, 282
radiology and diagnostic tests, 285–287
root words, 281–283
suffixes, 282
surgeries and procedures, 287–288
ureters, 280
urethra, 280–281
urinary bladder, 280
urine output, 279
urinary tract infection (UTI), 283
urine, 27, 68
urologist, 289
urology, 289
urticaria, 161
uterine cervix, 64
uterus, 21, 25, 27, 65–66, 68, 78, 308

•V•
vagina, 24, 64, 309
valves, heart, 188–190
varicose veins, 202

vas deferens, 27, 68, 80
vein, 26–27, 67–68
venereal diseases, 297–298
venipuncture, 208
venous system, 191
ventricles, 189
verruca, 163
vertabra, 37, 68
vertabrae, 37
vertebra, 26
vertebral column, 125
vertigo, 180
vesicle, 160
vessel, 23, 63, 76
viscera, 27, 68, 80, 84
visceral muscle, 141
visual examination, 20
vitiligo, 161
volvulus, 238
vomit, 71
Von Recklinghausen disorder, 338
vowels, combining, 49, 88
vulva, 24, 65, 77

•W•
warts, 163
water, wet, 25, 65, 78, 83
webMD site, 328
Webster’s American Dictionary of the
English Language, 16
Webster’s New World Medical Dictionary, 327
wheal, 160
white, 25, 65, 78
white blood cell differential count, 205
white blood cells, 192
whooping cough, 223
word semantics, 27
wrist, 20, 64

•X•
x-rays
...
Working in Ontario hospitals for 45 years, she also has more than
40 years’ experience in medical terminology and transcription
...
Beverley
is a Certified Medical Transcriptionist with the Association for Healthcare
Documentation Integrity (AHDI), formerly American Association for Medical
Transcription
...
Now an empty-nester, she lives in
Manzanillo, Mexico, with her husband of 40 years
...
A
...
She has
worked for publishers both large and small, mainly focusing her efforts on
development editing and acquisitions
...
She has also written for magazines such
as Indiana Business magazine, Indianapolis Monthly, and California Homes
...
A
...
A
...

She is currently completing her doctorate in Rhetoric and Composition
at SLU, where she is also a member of the adjunct faculty
...


Dedication
This book is dedicated to my friends and family
...
 Joseph’s Hospital and Hamilton Health Sciences
...
To my father, who taught me to challenge my brain on a daily
basis
...
To my daughter Michele, who showed me that it’s never too late
to change careers
...


To my husband Richard, my Scottish “diamond in the rough,” the love of my
life
...

—Beverley Henderson
To my husband Mike, for sharing the load, encouraging me to persevere,
serving as Saturday morning breakfast engineer so I could sneak away to
write, and for always answering “Why wouldn’t you?”
—Jennifer Dorsey

Authors’ Acknowledgments
My sincere thanks to Lindsay Lefevere, our acquisitions editor, for having the
faith and trust in my medical knowledge to keep me on board the Wiley bandwagon as the old “new kid on the block
...
I thank Lindsay for
giving me the opportunity to write about a subject that has been a large part
of my career for many years
...

To my “partner in crime” in this endeavor, Jen Dorsey
...
With her expertise in writing, Jen has coached me through
this experience
...

Working with Jennifer again has been an absolute pleasure
...
Thank you to my co-author Beverly Henderson
...

Big thanks go out to our talented acquisitions editor, Lindsay Lefevere, for
having faith that we could pull this off
...

Corbin Collins, our fabulous project editor, has shown us patience and graciousness beyond measure — and we haven’t scared him off yet! Thanks
to our gifted technical editor, Gallaudet Howard, for pointing out ways to
improve and update our terminology information
...
You guys rock!
My family is my support system without whom I could not have survived the
last few months
...
Thanks to my awesome, funny, delightfully precocious
children, who keep me laughing and remind me of what is most precious in
life
...

—Jennifer Dorsey

Publisher’s Acknowledgments
Acquisitions Editor: Lindsay Lefevere

Project Coordinator: Melissa Cossell

Editor: Corbin Collins

Illustrator: Kathryn Born

Technical Editor: Gallaudet Howard

Cover Image: ©iStock
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