Stat, golden hour, DNR, EEG, ALOC… does this string of words and abbreviations ring any bells to you? If not, chances are you aren’t familiar with some of the most common medical terms.
Don’t be frightened—you aren’t alone! In fact, a large majority of people don’t know some of the most common medical terms. This is a problem, however, as not knowing medical terminology can cause confusion that can result in some pretty bad scenarios.
To help prevent this from happening, here are five of the most common medical terminology you should know about!
1. Malignant and Benign
Okay, so right off the bat we’re giving you not one, but two medical terms you should know. However, these two go hand in hand rather nicely.
You’ll probably hear both of these words when getting a scan or talking to medical staff about tumors. Malignant refers to a tumor that has cancerous cells, whereas benign tumors are not cancerous.
Benign tumors can be small to large, and grow very slowly but cannot spread. Malignant tumors are usually large, grow at rapid rates, and can spread to other parts of the body. Knowing the difference is important to your health!
2. Acute
Anytime you have a condition or illness, there is a chance your diagnosis will include the word ‘acute.’ Simply put, acute means that the condition that started rapidly and abruptly yet lasts for a short period of time. During that time, symptoms can be quite severe.
Symptoms can include anything from pain (in the case of an acute injury) or even hallucinations (in the case of acute psychosis) depending on the condition.
3. Biopsy
A biopsy is a type of medical test. A surgeon or other person in the medical profession will take a sample of the patient’s skin to run tests.
Biopsies are usually painless as a local anesthetic is applied to the testing area. Only a small sample of tissue is needed so there is not really a need for a complete anesthesia. A biopsy can indicate the presence of a disease in the patient’s body.
4. Medical Terms Ending With -itis
There are dozens (and we mean dozens!) of medical terms and conditions that end with the suffix -itis.
Anytime you see this, you should think of inflammation. Tendonitis refers to inflammation of the tendons. Arthritis refers to inflammation of the joints. Other examples exist, but the bottom line is that it refers to inflammation.
By the way, if you need any more help translating medical terminology, you can take advantage of twi medical translation.
5. Copay
This next medical term is in the insurance realm. Now, not everybody has the keenest awareness of health insurance procedures and terminology. It’s a rather tricky topic to navigate, especially when it comes to healthcare.
A copay is a fixed, flat amount that you pay for health-related services every time you have an appointment or fill a prescription. This amount is determined by your insurance providers and your specific plan under that insurance.
Not all appointments require a copay, but rather rely on deductibles and premiums. The three terms are different, which you can learn more about by visiting here.
Need More Info?
We hope this short guide helped educate you on some of the most common medical terms. There are so many more we can go over, but the list is quite large. If you’re working in health care or need individual help, we recommend you take advantage of a medical translation service.
If you want more medical-related news and info, please visit the ‘health’ section of our blog under the lifestyle tab!
