Medical Terminology2-Roots, Prefix and Sufiix 2003

Commonly Used Roots, Prefix and

Suffix

By Madarina JuliaE. Suryadi

Medical Terminology

Basic Word Structure

PANCYTOPENIA

PREFIX WORDROOT

COMBINING VOWEL

SUFFIX

COMBINING FORM

TissueTissues may have different terms in normal and diseased states

NORMAL: LATIN WORD

DISEASED/ ABNORMAL: GREEK WORD

normal and abnormalTESTIS

UTERUSVAGINA

OVARIUMTUBA

NASUSORIS

HEPAR

orch/ometr/ocolp/o

oophor/osalphynx

rhin/ostomat/

onephepat/o

orchitisendometriti

scolpitis

vaginitisOophoritissalphyngiti

srhinitis

Stomatitishepatitis

normal and abnormal

RENCOR

PULMO

CORNEAAURIS

CEREBRUM

nephr/ocardi/o

pneum/o

kerat/oot/o

encephal/o

nephritiscarditis

pneumonitis

pneumoniakeratitis

otitisencephaliti

s

Tissue

ADIPOSE TISSUEFascia adiposaLIP/O : FAT– Lipolysis– Lipogenesis– Lipodystrophy– lipoma

Tissue

OSSEUS/OSOs femur, os radius, os pallatum, medulla osseumOSTE/O - : BONE– Osteogenesis

imperfecta– Osteoblast– Osteomyelitis

Tissue

NERVUSNernus ischiadicus, n. axillarisNEUR/O : NERVE– neuralgia– neuropathy– neuritis

Tissue

MUSCULUSMusculus pectoralis major, m. rectus abdominisMY/OMYS/O: MUSCLE– myopathy– myositis– Myoglobin– Myofibra– Myocardium– Myometrium

Tissue

CARTILAGOCartilago thyreoidea, cartilago septi nasiCHONDR/O : CARTILAGE– chondrodysplasia– Achondroplasia– Osteogenesis enchondralis– Chondrogenesis

Tissue

CUTISCUTANE/0

Intracutane, subcutaneDERMISDERMAT/O : SKIN– dermatitis– leukoderma– epidermis– dermatology

Tissue

VASAVASCUL/O

vascularisation, avascular ANGI/O : BLOOD VESSEL– angiopathy/ vasculopathy– angiography– Angiogram– angioma– Vasculitis

Tissue

SANGUIS; SANGUINISHEM/O =HAIMAEMHEMAT/O: BLOOD– hematology– hematopoiesis– anemia– cholesterolemia– hemoglobin

Color= chrom

LEUK/O : ALBUS : WHITEALBINO, CORPUS ALBICANLINEA ALBALEUKOCYTE LEUKOCYTURIALEUKOCYTOSISLEUKEMIALEUKODERMALEUKODYSTROPHYLEUKOPLAKIALEUKORRHEAFLUOR ALBUS

Color = chrom

MELAN/O : FUSCUS : BLACK MELANOCYTEMELANOBLASTMELANOMAMELANURIAMELANINMELENA

ColorERYTHR/O : RUBRO :

RED CORPUS RUBRUM NUCLEUS RUBER

ERYTHROBLASTERYTHROCYTE ERYTHROCLASTERYTHEMATOUSERYSIPELASERYTHREMIAERYTHRODERMA

Color

CYAN/O: BLUE

CYANOTICCYANOSISCYANOPHILCYANOPSIACYANOLABE

glaucos : bluish green Griseus : bluish grey

ColorCHLOR/O:CHLOASMA :

GREEN

CHLOROMACHLOROPHYLCHLOROPSIACHLOROLABE

COLOR

GRISEUS = POLIOS = PHAIOS =GREY

Substantia grisea Poliomyelitis

Color

XANTH/O: FLAVUS: LUTEUS: YELLOW

CORPUS LUTEUMXANTHOCHROMICXANTHOCHROMIAXANTHELASMAXANTHOMAXANTHOPSIA

Body activities

Audio = acouo = to hear Opsia = opia = blepo = to seePhagien = to eatDipsa = to drinkPhrasis = to speechLaleo = to talkGradior = to walkHalo = pneu = to breatheOureo = to urinateErgo = to workSedeo =sella = to sit

Osme = bromo =to smellMnena = memoryPalpo = to touchKineo= moveo = to moveGustatus = geuma = to tasteHypnos = somnus = sopor= to sleepGlutio = to swallow Defaecatio= chezo = to defaecate

Qualitative Measurement

Major= magnus = mega = greatMinor = parvus = smallBreve = short

Longus = longDurum = hard

Mollis = softBradys = tardus = slowTachys = celer = fastPoly = multi = manyOligos = few = rareAsthenia = weak

prefix – Location

end/o – ento - enesointra

ect/o

exo

ec

retr/o

par/a

peri

supra/super /ultra

epiextra

infra/ sub

prefix – Location

mes/o

Circum/peri

Ante = beforeMeta = behindTrans = beyond, to the other sideInter = between, amongDia = complete = through Per = through, overAna = upon, upwardsCata = downward

prefix – Locationexamples:

ectopic pregnancyectoderm, mesoderm, endodermencephalitisendometrium vs. parametriumendotoxin vs. exotoxinPeriosteum, pericardiumCircumoral, circumductioretroperitonealsuprarenal, etc.

A/AN

NULLI

prefix - number

ANEMIAAPLASTIC ANEMIAANALGESIANULLIPARA

WITHOUT

LACKING

DEFICIENT

HEMIPARESISHEMIPLEGIAHEMIHYPERTROPHYSEMICOMATOSE

prefix - number

½ hemi

semi

HALF

PARTIAL

prefix - number

MONOCLONAL ANTIBODYMONOPARESISMONONUCLEAR CELLSUNICELLULARUNILATERAL

uni - mono

prefix - number

PRIMIPARA, PRIMIPAROUSPRIMIGRAVIDAPRIMITIVE PRIMORDIAL GERM CELLS

1st

primi

BI - DI(PLO)

prefix - number

BICUSPID VALVEBICEPSBIFURCATIODIPLOCOCCUSDIPLOID

prefix - number

•MULTI – MANY : MULTIPARA, MULTINUCLEAR

GIANT CELLS, MULTIGRAVIDA

•3 - TRI : TRICUSPIDALIS, TRI IN DIE

•4 - TETRA : TETRAPARESES, TETRAPLEGIA

•5 - PENTA : PENTAMER

negative sense

ANTI (ANT): CONTRA =AGAINST, OPPOSED

• ANTIBIOTIC

• ANTIHISTAMINE

• ANTITOXIN

MAL = BAD Malnutrition, malaria

A, AN = ABSENCE OF SOMETHING, DEFICIENT Anaerobe, anemia,

anhidrosis

negative sense

dys : difficult, painful, abnormal

DYSMENORRHEA

DYSPEPSIA

DYSTROPHY

(DUCHENNE MUSCULODYSTROPHY)

DYSURIA

hyper and hypo

hyper : beyond normal, excessive, over hypo: under, deficient, below normal

HYPOGLYCEMIAHYPOTHYROIDISM

HYPOTENSIHYPODERMIC

HYPERGLYCEMIAHYPERTHYROIDIS

MHYPERTENSI

tachy and brady

tachy: rapid, fast brady: slow

tachycardiatachypnea

bradycardiabradypnea

suffix – noun

dyspnea, rhinorrheaanemia, osteomalaciahypertrophyectasiaarteriosclerosis

a, ia, y, sia, sis, asia, asis, esis, ema, ism, us:

state, condition

• nephrolithiasis• erythema• hyperchromasi

a• diuresis• synergism• hydrocephalus

suffix – noun

itis inflammation

oma,ma

tumor, disease

oophoritis fibroadenomaendometritis adenocarcinomacolitis ulcerosa gliomahepatitis edemacarditis lymphoma

SuffixNOUN - ADJECTIVE

NOUN ADJECTIVEcyanosisanemianervus

sclerosisstenosisparalysis

cyanoticanemicnervousscleroticstenoticparalytic

SUFFIXES

-ALGIA = PAIN-CELE = HERNIA-CENTESIS = SURGICAL PUNCTURE TO REMOTE

A FLUID-PENIA = DECREASE-DYNIA = PAIN-LYSIS = DESTRUCTION = BREAKDOWN-MALACIA = SOFTENING-OPSY = TO VIEW-POIESIS = FORMATION-PLASIA = DEVELOPMENT

SUFFIXES

-OSIS = ABNORMAL CONDITION-PATHY = DISEASE-PEXY = FIXATION-STASIS = STOPPING. CONTROLING-SCOPE = INSTRUMENT FOR

EXAMINATION -PTOSIS = DROPPING

Further Readings

Chabner DE. The Language of Medicine. W.B. Saunders Company, 1981Dunmore CW, Fleischer RM. Medical Terminology. Exercises in Etymology, 2nd ed. F.A Davis Company, 1985Dennerll JT. Medical Terminology. A Programmed Text, 5th ed. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1988