Welcome back to the channel where medical topics are made easy.
In this video we’re going to go over some common medical abbreviations for a bunch
of different categories that you can see here.
I’m going to time stamp these categories down in
the description so that way it’s easier to click on the ones you want to review.
Don’t forget to turn on the captions as well and read along.
This will help with learning and retention.
And as always you can find the notes and the charts
for this video linked down below in the description.
Let’s get started.
We’re going to begin with common abbreviations that you might see with charting.
And before we do that, hit pause in the video quick and try to name as many as you can
and then see how many you get right.
So starting with AMA, that stands for Against Medical Advice.
DC stands for Discharge or Discontinue.
DNR = Do Not Resuscitate
H&P = History & Physical
HPI = History of Present Illness
H/O = History Of
NKDA = No Known Drug Allergies
PCP = Primary Care Physician
A&O = Alert and Oriented
WNL = Within Normal Limits
RF = Risk Factors
Sx = Symptoms
Dx = Diagnosis
Tx = Treatment
NAD = No Acute Distress
UOP = Urine Output
I&O = Intake and Output
C/O = Complaint Of
CC = Chief Complaint
ROS = Review of Systems
Next we have another round of abbreviations you might see with charting.
Again hit pause in the video and try to name as many as you can, and then check your answers.
DDx stands for Differential Diagnosis.
MDM = Medical Decision Making
IBW = Ideal Body Weight
DOB = Date of Birth
ICU = Intensive Care Unit
MVA = Motor Vehicle Accident
GSW = Gunshot Wound
Fx = Fracture
EBL = Estimated Blood Loss
BM = Bowel Movement
CP = Chest Pain
SOB = Shortness of Breath
DOE = Dyspnea on Exertion
STAT = Immediately
CV = Cardiovascular
GI = Gastrointestinal
ID = Infectious Disease
S/P = Status Post
FB = Foreign Body
ALS or BLS = Advanced or Basic Life Support
Moving on to vital signs, you might see these in charts as well.
Again hit pause and try to name them, and then see if you’re right.
VS stands for Vital Signs.
VSS stands for Vital Signs Stable.
BP = Blood Pressure
HR = Heart Rate
P = Pulse
RR = Respiratory Rate
T = Temperature
SpO2 or SaO2 = Oxygen Saturation
Ht/Wt = Height and Weight
BMI = Body Mass Index
Next we have common lab abbreviations.
How many of these can you name before looking at the answers?
CBC stands for Complete Blood Count.
WBC = White Blood Cells
RBC = Red Blood Cells
Plt = Platelets
BMP = Basic Metabolic Panel
CMP = Comprehensive Metabolic Panel
LFT = Liver Function Test
H&H = Hemoglobin & Hematocrit
Hb or HGB = Hemoglobin
HCT = Hematocrit
Na = Sodium
K = Potassium
Ca = Calcium
UA = Urinalysis
ABG = Arterial Blood Gas
PT = Prothrombin Time
PTT = Partial Thromboplastin Time
INR = International Normalized Ratio
T&S = Type & Screen
T&C = Type & Cross
In addition to labs, there might also be imaging or other tests ordered.
CXR stands for Chest X-Ray
ABX = Abdominal X-Ray
US = Ultrasound
MRI = Magnetic Resonance Imaging
CT = Computed Tomography
EKG or ECG = Electrocardiogram
EEG = Electroencephalogram
KUB = Kidney, Ureter, and Bladder X-Ray
PFT = Pulmonary Function Test
Let’s move on to abbreviations you might see associated with pharmacy.
Most of these have to do with the frequency in which you give a medication.
So starting with AC, that stands for Before Meals
PC stands for After Meals.
And the way you can remember this is “A” comes before “P” in the alphabet.
So A stands for before meals, and P stands for after meals.
QD = Once Daily
BID = Twice Daily
TID = Three Times Daily
QID = Four Times Daily
QHS = At Bedtime
QAM = Every Morning
QPM = Every Evening
QOD = Every Other Day
QH = Once Every Hour
Q2H = Every 2 Hours
Q3H = Every 3 Hours
PRN = As Needed
PO = By Mouth
NPO = Nothing By Mouth
SC or SQ = Subcutaneous
IM = Intramuscular
IV = Intravenous
OTC = Over The Counter
Next we have some abbreviations for different medications or drug names.
Try to name as many as you can, and then see if you’re right.
BB stands for Beta Blocker
CCB = Calcium Channel Blocker
ARB = Angiotensin II Receptor Blocker
ACEi = ACE Inhibitor
NTG = Nitroglycerin
ASA = Aspirin
ABX = Antibiotics
PCN = Penicillin
TPA = Tissue Plasminogen Activator
APAP = Acetaminophen
NS = Normal Saline
D5W = Dextrose 5% in Water
LR = Lactated Ringer’s
ETOH = Alcohol
HCTZ = Hydrochlorothiazide
MTX = Methotrexate
OCP = Oral Contraceptive Pill
TMP/SMX = Trimethoprim Sulfamethoxazole
MOM = Milk of Magnesia
PPI = Proton Pump Inhibitor
Next we have abbreviations for different diagnoses or conditions.
Hit pause in the video and try to name as many as you can.
CAD stands for Coronary Artery Disease
HTN stands for Hypertension
DM = Diabetes Mellitus
CHF = Congestive Heart Failure
COPD = Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
MI = Myocardial Infarction
PE = Pulmonary Embolism
PNA = Pneumonia
TIA = Transient Ischemic Attack
CVA = Cerebrovascular Accident
ARDS = Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome
CKD = Chronic Kidney Disease
AKI = Acute Kidney Injury
ARF = Acute Renal Failure
ESRD = End Stage Renal Disease
CF = Cystic Fibrosis
CP = Cerebral Palsy
IBD = Inflammatory Bowel Disease
IBS = Irritable Bowel Syndrome
UC = Ulcerative Colitis
Let’s continue with more diagnoses and conditions.
Starting with PUD we’ve got Peptic Ulcer Disease
GERD = Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
ICP = Intracranial Pressure
TBI = Traumatic Brain Injury
TGA = Transient Global Amnesia
UTI = Urinary Tract Infection
URI = Upper Respiratory Infection
RAD = Reactive Airway Disease
SBO = Small Bowel Obstruction
DVT = Deep Venous Thrombosis
RSV = Respiratory Syncytial Virus
VF = Ventricular Fibrillation
VT = Ventricular Tachycardia
Afib or AF = Atrial Fibrillation
PVC = Premature Ventricular Contraction
MS = Multiple Sclerosis
PD = Parkinson’s Disease
BPH = Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
RA = Rheumatoid Arthritis
OSA = Obstructive Sleep Apnea
We’re down to our last 2 categories,
and we’re going to start with abbreviations associated with anatomy.
Beginning with the abdomen, it can be broken up into different quadrants
especially when someone is referring to the location of abdominal pain or site of injury.
Starting with RUQ, that stands for Right Upper Quadrant
LUQ = Left Upper Quadrant
RLQ = Right Lower Quadrant
LLQ = Left Lower Quadrant
And then we’re going to move on to the different chamber of the heart.
RA stands for Right Atrium.
LA = Left Atrium
RV = Right Ventricle
LV = Left Ventricle
As we move to the extremities,
RUE = Right Upper Extremity
LUE = Left Upper Extremity
RLE = Right Lower Extremity
LLE = Left Lower Extremity
And then going back to the abdomen, ABD stands for Abdomen.
The lung fields can be broken up and abbreviated as well.
LUL or LLL stands for Left Upper or Lower Lobe.
RUL, RML, RLL stands for Right Upper, Middle, or Lower Lobe.
CBD stands for Common Bile Duct
OD = Right Eye
OS = Left Eye
OU = Both Eyes
HC = Head Circumference
Let’s wrap this up with abbreviations you might see associated with treatment or care.
Again hit pause in the video and try to name as many as you can.
Bx stands for Biopsy.
ECMO stands for Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation
FNA = Fine Needle Aspiration
I&D = Incision & Drainage
PT = Physical Therapy
OT = Occupational Therapy
PEEP = Positive End Expiratory Pressure
CPAP = Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
BiPAP = Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure
CABG = Coronary Artery Bypass Graft
IVIG = Intravenous Immune Globulin
ORIF = Open Reduction Internal Fixation
NGT = Nasogastric Tube
Pre-Op = Preoperative
Post-Op = Postoperative
POC = Point of Care
AKA = Above the Knee Amputation
BKA = Below the Knee Amputation
PPE = Personal Protective Equipment
IUP = Intrauterine Pregnancy
These were some of the many common medical abbreviations out there.
And hopefully you found this video useful.
If you did, please hit that like button and comment down below.
And if you’re new to the channel make sure to subscribe to not miss
out on future videos that make medical topics easy.
And as always you can find the notes and tables
for this video linked down below in the description on the website.
Thanks for watching, and I hope you check out future videos.