Before we can start in with some new and interesting medical
terms, you need to learn a few fundamentals of how medical
terminology is constructed as a language. There are three basic
parts to medical terms: a word root (usually the middle of the
word and its central meaning), a prefix (comes at the beginning
and usually identifies some subdivision or part of the central
meaning), and a suffix (comes at the end and modifies the
central meaning as to what or who is interacting with it or what
is happening to it). An example may make better sense. therm =
heat hypothermia (less heat), thermometer (measuring heat) Let’s
look at a real medical term and take it apart. |myo =
muscle||card = heart||itis = inflammation| Don’t get blown away
by that big, intimidating word! We haven’t introduced word roots
yet. I just wanted to demonstrate the major parts of a medical
term. Let’s see how prefix and suffix changes can alter the
meaning of a term without changing its central meaning by
keeping the root the same. |myocard