Lesson: Medical Terminology – Understanding Body Structure Disorders
Overview
This lesson will help you understand medical terms related to Body Structures. You'll learn the Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes that form these terms, making it easier to decipher medical vocabulary and the colors as well as they are often included in the root of these words.
Color Prefixes:
Roots
CHROM(AT)-
- Meaning: Color.
- Latin: Color, oris (m) - color.
- Examples:
- Heterochromia
- Meaning: Different color of twin anatomical structures.
- Achromatopsia
- Meaning: Color-blindness.
- Poikilocytus
- Meaning: Erythrocyte with irregular form.
- Dyschromia
- Meaning: Skin decoloration.
ERYTH(R)-
- Meaning: Red.
- Latin: Ruber, bra, brum - red.
- Examples:
- Erythema
- Meaning: Redness of skin.
- Erythropoiesis
- Meaning: Formation of red blood cells.
LEUC-, LEUK-
- Meaning: White, pale.
- Latin: Albus, a, um - white, pale.
- Examples:
- Leucotomia
- Meaning: Section of the white brain substance during lobotomy.
- Leucopenia
- Meaning: Decrease in the number of white blood cells.
MELAN-
- Meaning: Black, dark.
- Latin: Niger, gra, grum - black, dark.
- Examples:
- Melanopathia
- Meaning: Dark pigmentation of the skin.
POLIO-
- Meaning: Gray.
- Latin: Griseus, a, um - gray.
- Examples:
- Poliomyelitis
- Meaning: Inflammation of gray matter in the spinal cord.
CYAN-
- Meaning: Blue, purple.
- Latin: Lividus, a, um / Purpureus, a, um - blue, purple.
- Examples:
- Acrocyanosis
- Meaning: Bluish limbs.
CHLOR-
- Meaning: Green.
- Latin: Viridis, e - green.
- Examples:
- Chloroma
- Meaning: Malignant tumor with green color.
XANTH-
- Meaning: Yellow.
- Latin: Luteus, a, um - yellow.
- Examples:
- Xanthochromia
- Meaning: Yellow discoloration of bodily fluids or tissues
Prefixes for Body Structures
Roots
Suffixes
Disorders Related to Skin:
Dermatitis
- Meaning: Inflammation of the skin.
- Components: Derm(at)- (skin) + -itis (inflammation).
Dermatophytia
- Meaning: Fungal infection of the skin.
- Components: Derm(at)- (skin) + -phytia (mycosis).
Dyschromia
- Meaning: Skin discoloration.
- Components: Dys- (disturbed) + chrom(at)- (color, colour).
Keratitis
- Meaning: Inflammation of the cornea.
- Components: Kerat- (keratin) + -itis (inflammation).
Dyskeratosis
- Meaning: Abnormal development of skin cells.
- Components: Dys- (disturbed) + kerat- (keratin) + -osis (condition).
Disorders Related to Nerves:
- Neurotonia
- Meaning: Abnormal pressure or force on nerves.
- Components: Neur- (nerve) + -tonia (pressure, force).
Disorders Related to Veins:
Phlebectasia
- Meaning: Dilation of a vein.
- Components: Phleb- (vein) + -ectasia (dilation).
Phleborrhexis
- Meaning: Rupture of a vein.
- Components: Phleb- (vein) + -rrhexis (rupture).
Phlebothrombosis
- Meaning: Formation of a clot in a vein leading to obstruction.
- Components: Phleb- (vein) + -thrombosis (clot formation).
Thrombophlebitis
- Meaning: Formation of a clot due to inflamed vein walls.
- Components: Thrombo- (clot) + phleb- (vein) + -itis (inflammation).
Disorders Related to Blood Vessels:
- Angiorrhexis