Medical Terminology Reference Guide

Common Medical Prefixes

Prefixes are added to the beginning of words to modify their meaning. Understanding these can help decipher complex medical terms.

Prefix	Meaning	Example	Related Terms
a-, an-	without, lack of	anemia (lack of blood)	aseptic, analgesia, anorexia
anti-	against	antibiotic (against life)	antihistamine, anticoagulant, antiviral
brady-	slow	bradycardia (slow heart rate)	bradykinesia, bradypnea
dys-	difficult, painful	dyspnea (difficult breathing)	dysphagia, dysfunction, dystrophy
hyper-	excessive, above	hypertension (high blood pressure)	hyperglycemia, hyperthyroidism, hyperactive
hypo-	below, deficient	hypotension (low blood pressure)	hypoglycemia, hypothyroidism, hypodermic
inter-	between	intercostal (between ribs)	intervertebral, intercellular, interpersonal
intra-	within	intravenous (within veins)	intramuscular, intracranial, intracellular
sub-	under	subcutaneous (under the skin)	sublingual, subacute, subclinical
tachy-	fast	tachycardia (fast heart rate)	tachypnea, tachyarrhythmia, tachypnoea

Suffixes are added to the end of words to modify their meaning or indicate a procedure, condition, or disease.

Suffix	Meaning	Example	Related Terms
-algia	pain	neuralgia (nerve pain)	myalgia, arthralgia, fibromyalgia
-ectomy	surgical removal	appendectomy (removal of appendix)	tonsillectomy, mastectomy, hysterectomy
-emia	blood condition	anemia (lack of blood)	leukemia, hypoglycemia, uremia
-itis	inflammation	arthritis (joint inflammation)	bronchitis, dermatitis, gastritis
-logy	study of	cardiology (study of the heart)	neurology, dermatology, pathology
-oma	tumor	melanoma (black tumor)	carcinoma, lipoma, glioma
-opathy	disease	neuropathy (nerve disease)	cardiomyopathy, retinopathy, arthropathy
-osis	abnormal condition	osteoporosis (porous bones)	fibrosis, thrombosis, necrosis
-plasty	surgical repair	rhinoplasty (nose surgery)	angioplasty, arthroplasty, mammoplasty
-scopy	visual examination	endoscopy (internal examination)	colonoscopy, arthroscopy, laparoscopy

Key terminology used in medical practice and documentation.

Sudden onset, short duration

Example: acute appendicitis

Not cancerous

Example: benign tumor

Long-lasting condition

Example: chronic bronchitis

Identification of a disease

Example: differential diagnosis

Cause of a disease

Example: viral etiology

Related to fever

Example: febrile seizure

Cancerous

Example: malignant melanoma

Expected outcome of a disease

Example: poor prognosis

Disappearance of disease symptoms

Example: cancer in remission

Group of symptoms that occur together

Example: Down syndrome

Area of abnormal tissue

Example: skin lesion

Of unknown cause

Example: idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Important abbreviations used in medical documentation and communication.