Welcome back to the channel where medical topics are made easy.
In this video we’re going to simplify medical terminology.
Before we get started, make sure to turn on the captions and read along.
This will help with learning and memory retention.
So what is medical terminology? It's the language used to describe
things like anatomy, structures, conditions, diagnoses, procedures, treatments, and much more.
And learning these medical words can be tough at first. It can almost feel like a different language.
But if you break the word down it can really help you better understand the medical term.
Most medical terms have a beginning, middle, and end.
And when combined they help describe the word.
So let's take a look at each part.
The prefix is not always present, but when it is, it forms the beginning of the word.
The easy way to think of the prefix is it’s
generally the descriptive part of the medical term.
So it helps describe characteristics like a location, direction, number,
quantity, amount, size, or color.
Next is the root. The root forms the middle of the word,
and if there is no prefix then it's going to form the first part of the word.
The easy way to think about the root is it gives the medical term its core meaning.
It's the subject of the word and it often pertains to a body part or system.
Finally we have the suffix which forms the end of the word.
The easy way to think about the suffix is it brings meaning to the medical term.
The suffix might indicate a disease, disorder, condition,
procedure, process, specialty, or test.
So let’s take a look at an example. We're going to use hyperthyroidism.
We can see the word has a beginning which is the prefix, a middle which is the root,
and an end which is the suffix.
"Hyper" means above normal or in excess, "thyroid" refers to the thyroid gland,
and "ism" describes a condition.
So hyperthyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland is overactive
and it produces too much hormone.
You can see once you know the meaning of these common word elements,
you’ll be able to put them together and figure out what the medical term means.
We’re going to focus on common prefixes in this video,
and then the next couple videos we're going to talk about the roots and suffixes,
so make sure to hit that subscribe button so you don't miss out on those.
And you'll also want to check out the previous video on common medical abbreviations.
Let’s begin with common prefixes that describe a quantity.
So these are things like numbers or amounts.
Hit pause in the video and see how many you can name, or if you're just learning medical terms
for the first time, then you can watch the video a second time and see how many you get right.
Starting with "Mono", this means one or single.
You can think of a monocle which is a single eyeglass to remember mono refers to one.
"Uni" also refers to one, and you can think of a unicycle which has a single wheel.
The prefix "Bi, Di, or Diplo" means two or double,
And "Tri" refers to three or triple.
You can think of a bicycle which has 2 wheels and a tricycle which has 3 wheels.
In medical terminology you can think of your biceps and triceps.
Biceps means two heads or parts, and triceps means three heads or parts.
Next we have the prefix "Qua" which means four or quadruple.
You can think of a quadrilateral here which is a 4-sided shape or figure.
Or in medical terms you can think of your quadriceps which contain 4 parts or muscles.
Next we have "Semi" which refers to half,
And "Hemi" also means half or one side.
So you can think of a semicolon which is a half of a colon.
Next we have the prefix "Equi" or "Iso" wich means equal.
And you can think of an equilateral triangle which has 3 equal sides in length.
Finally we have "Eu" and "Normo" which both mean normal.
So in medicine you can say euglycemic which means a normal level of sugar in the blood
and normotensive which means a normal blood pressure.
We have a few more prefixes that have to do with quantities,
and also a couple that have to do with sizes that are included here as well.
Again hit pause and see how many you can answer correctly.
First we have "Hyper" which means above normal, in excess, high, or elevated.
You can think of a hyper child who has a lot of energy
to help you remember hyper refers to overactive or above normal.
"Hypo" is the opposite. It means below normal, deficient, low, or decreased.
For example, hypoglycemia is the state in which blood sugar or glucose is low.
Next we have "A" or "An" which means absent or lacking.
This is easy to remember, just use the "A" to remember the word "Absent".
An example in medicine would be anoxia which is the absence
of oxygen reaching the tissues and organs.
"Pan" and "Omni" both mean all.
For example, pancytopenia is the deficiency of all 3 cell components of blood
which are white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets.
You can also think of omnivores which eat all food types including plant and animal origin.
"Multi" and "Poly" both mean many or a lot.
This is easy to remember, just use "multi" to think of "multiple".
Or you can think of a polygon which is a shape that has multiple sides.
The prefix "Micro" means small,
and opposite of that is "Macro" which refers to large.
"Megalo" is also another way of saying large.
For "micro" just think of "microscope" to help you remember small.
And then macro is simply going to be the opposite of that.
And then for megalo, just think of mega to help you remember big.
Finally we have "Oligo" which means few or very little.
Prefixes can also be used to describe color.
Try to fill in the blanks and then see if you’re right.
The general prefix for color is "Chromo" or "Chromato".
You can think of chromosome which means “colored body” to help you remember chromo means color.
Chromosomes got their name for the colorful dyes that are used to stain them in research
in order to better see them. So they become these colorful bodies.
Next we have the prefix "Alb" which refers to pale.
You can think of albino which refers to a person or animal
with a congenital absence of pigment. And this causes them to appear pale or white.
Next is "Chloro" which means green.
You can think of chlorophyll which is the green pigment in plants.
Next is "Cyano" which refers to blue.
For example in medical terms, cyanosis refers to a bluish discoloration of the skin.
And this is typically from poor circulation or low oxygen levels in the blood.
Next we have "Erythro" which means red.
You may have heard of erythrocytes which are red blood cells.
"Glauco" refers to opaque or gray.
Next is "Leuko" which means white.
Similar to erythrocytes which are the red blood cells, leukocytes are the white blood cells.
"Melano" means black.
You can think of melanoma which is cancer of the melanocytes.
And the melanocytes are what produce melanin and the dark pigmentation of the skin.
Another prefix for gray is "Polio".
"Porphyr" means purple,
and the prefix "Rhodo" means a rose color red.
Finally we have "Xantho" which refers to yellow.
There’s a medical term called xanthochromia.
So if we break the word down, we know "xantho" means yellow and "chromo" means color.
Xanthrochromia refers to the yellow color seen in cerebrospinal fluid
several hours after a bleed into the subarachnoid space, usually from a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
So you can start to see that by breaking down the word and knowing the meaning for common prefixes,
can help bring meaning to the medical term.
Next we have prefixes that have to do with time and speed.
How many can you name before looking at the answers?
The first 2 are easy.
"Pre" means before
and "Post" means after.
You can think of pre-operative which refers to the period of time before a surgery
and post-operative which refers to the time after a surgery.
There are 2 more prefixes that can mean before and they're "Pro" and "Ante".
An example medical term is antepartum which refers to before childbirth.
Next we have the prefix "Re" which means again.
This one is easy to remember,
just think of the word repeat to help you remember the prefix "re" means again.
Then we have "Retro" which means back or backward.
You can think of retro with fashion, and when something is retro
it's from the past. This will help you remember retro means backwards.
"Neo" means new
And you can think of neonatal which refers to a newborn child.
Next is "Chrono" which refers to time.
You can think of things being in chronological order,
which refers to the order in which events occurred from earliest to latest.
The last 2 prefixes "Tachy" and "Brady" both refer to speed.
"Tachy" means fast
and "Brady" means slow.
These terms are frequently used with the heart.
Tachycardia means a fast or rapid heart rate. And bradycardia refers to a slow heart rate.
Another example is tachypnea which is a fast or rapid respiratory rate.
Let’s move on to prefixes that have to do with location or position
Some locations have more than one prefix that can be used.
So we’re going to make it easy by using the green box to label and visualize the different positions.
Beginning with the first 4 prefixes which are "Epi",
"Hyper", "Supra", and "Super"; they all mean above, upon, or on.
Remember we used "hyper" when talking about amounts.
Above can refer to position or it can refer to amounts like above normal.
So if we go to the green box we can label epi, hyper, supra, and super above the image.
The next 3 prefixes which are "Sub", "Hypo", and "Infra" all mean below, beneath, or under.
They’re essentially the opposite of epi, hyper, and supra.
Remember we also used "Hypo" when talking about amounts.
Below can refer to position or it can refer to amounts like below normal or deficient.
So if we go back to the green box again, we can label sub, hypo, and infra below the image.
Next we have "Dextro" which means right or on the right side.
We're going to label the right and left on the green box as if we're looking at a radiology image.
So things on the right will be on the left side of the screen, and things on the left will be on the right side of the screen.
The final 2 prefixes are "Levo" and "Sinistro" which both mean left or on the left side.
And we've labeled that on the green box as well.
You can remember Left and Levo both start with the letter “L” to make it easier for you.
Let’s continue with more prefixes that have to do with location and position,
and take a look at the ones referring to front, back, and around.
The first 3 prefixes "Ante", "Antero", and "Ventri" or "Ventro" all refer to front,
in front of, or anterior
If we go back to the green box, we’re now going to at it from the side.
So the front is on the right of your screen and the back is on the left of your screen.
and we’re going to label ante, antero, and ventri or ventro on the front.
You might remember we used "ante" when we talked about time.
So ante means before, and the before can be used as a time
or before can be used as a position meaning in front of.
There are a couple tricks to remember that all these terms mean anterior.
Ante, Antero, and Anterior all start with “Ante”, so that's pretty easy.
And for ventri, you can think of ventriloquist which means stomach talker.
The stomach is in the front which can help you remember ventri refers to the front.
The next 2 prefixes are "Postero" and "Dorsi" or "Dorso" which mean back, behind, or posterior.
And we're going to label those behind the box.
Postero is essentially the opposite of antero,
and dorsi or dorso is the opposite of ventri or ventro.
"Postero" sounds like posterior so that one's easy to remember.
And for dorsi you can think of a dorsal fin on the back of a fish or shark to remember back.
Finally we have "Peri" and "Circum" which mean around or surrounding.
And we’ll label those with a circle around the square.
You can also use the circle to think of "peri" and "perimeter"
and "circum" and "circumference" to remember these terms mean around or surrounding.
As we continue with location and position, there are also prefixes that have to do with inside,
outside, away, toward, and through.
So let’s take a look at those.
"Endo", "Intra", and "Intro" all mean inside, internal, within, interior, or inner
which we're going to label inside the box.
You can think of endoscope which is an instrument used to view the inside of the body.
And you can also remember that "intro" and "intra" along with inside,
internal, inner, and interior all begin with “in” or in.
The opposite of that is "Exo", "Extra", or "Extro" which all mean outside, external, exterior, or outer.
And we're going to label that outside the box.
You can think of an exit sign which takes you outside and begins with the letters “EX”
the same way that "exo", "extra", and "extro" do.
You might also see the prefix "Ecto" which means outside as well.
Think of ectoderm which is the outer most layer of cells or tissues in an embryo.
Next we have "Ab" which refers to moving away from.
And we have "Ad" which means moving toward.
In medical terms, abduction and adduction are commonly
used to describe the extremities moving away or toward the body.
So for example, abducting the arms or legs
(that's A-B-ducting) means moving them away from the body.
And adducting the extremities, (which is A-D-ducting) refers to moving them toward the body.
The easy way to remember this is to think of
ADDuction and ADD, and you're adding to the rest of the body.
Finally we have "Trans" which means through or across.
You can think of transfer or transportation which is the movement across two points.
Or translucent or transparent which is light going through or across something.
Let’s wrap this up with positions and locations that refer to middle,
lateral, nearby, and between.
"Meso" along with "Medi" or "Medio" or "Media" all refer to middle or midline.
It's easy to remember because they all start with the letter “M”
An example medical term is mesoderm which means the middle layer of an embryo,
the same way that ectoderm meant the outside layer.
Next we have the prefix "Latero" which means lateral or to one side,
It's easy to remember because "latero" and "lateral" sound the same.
Next we have "ParaA which refers to nearby, alongside, or beside.
You can think of parachute and if you're going to jump off a plane,
you would want your parachute alongside or nearby you.
You can see we have our red box labeled "para" nearby the green one.
"Juxta" means next to.
You can think of juxtapose which means putting two or more things side by side.
You can see we have our green "juxta" box next to the main green one.
Next we have "Inter" which refers to between.
Make sure to not confuse "inter" with "intra" or "intro" which mean inside.
"Ambi" or "Amphi" mean both or both sides.
You can remember "ambi" and ambidextrous which is the ability to use both hands equally well.
And you can use "amphi" and amphibians which live in both the water
and on land throughout their life cycle.
And these terms will help you remember both.
Finally we have "Ipsi" which means the same and "Contra" which means against.
These are typically used with the medical terms ipsilateral and contralateral,
where ipsilateral means the same side as what is being referenced,
versus contralateral is the opposite side of what is being referenced.
So if we reference two things on the same side of the green box as depicted by the stars,
then they are ipsilateral.
But if we reference something on the other side of the green box in relation to the first star,
then that second star is contralateral.
Hopefully this helped you better understand medical terminology and prefixes.
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