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20 Examples of Suffixes in Medical Terminology

Category: Medicine
September 23, 2023
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"What are the 20 examples of suffix? Discover 20 examples of suffixes commonly used in medical terminology, enhancing your understanding of medical terms."
20 Examples of Suffixes in Medical Terminology

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What are the 20 examples of suffix?

Certainly! Here are 20 common suffixes used in medical terminology, along with their meanings:

  1. -itis: Inflammation (e.g., arthritis, tonsillitis).
  2. -ectomy: Surgical removal or excision (e.g., appendectomy, tonsillectomy).
  3. -ology: The study of (e.g., cardiology, dermatology).
  4. -osis: A condition or abnormal state (e.g., osteoporosis, psychosis).
  5. -emia: Presence of a substance in the blood (e.g., anemia, hyperglycemia).
  6. -pathy: Disease or abnormality (e.g., neuropathy, myopathy).
  7. -oma: Tumor or mass (e.g., carcinoma, lymphoma).
  8. -ectomy: Surgical removal or excision (e.g., appendectomy, mastectomy).
  9. -algia: Pain (e.g., neuralgia, myalgia).
  10. -scopy: Visual examination or inspection (e.g., endoscopy, colonoscopy).
  11. -rrhage: Abnormal or excessive flow or bleeding (e.g., hemorrhage, menorrhagia).
  12. -plasty: Surgical repair or reconstruction (e.g., rhinoplasty, angioplasty).
  13. -rrhea: Flow or discharge (e.g., diarrhea, gonorrhea).
  14. -itis: Inflammation (e.g., hepatitis, colitis).
  15. -gram: Record or image (e.g., electrocardiogram, mammogram).
  16. -ectomy: Surgical removal or excision (e.g., appendectomy, adenectomy).
  17. -emia: Blood condition (e.g., anemia, leukemia).
  18. -osis: Abnormal condition or disease (e.g., osteoporosis, neurosis).
  19. -trophy: Nourishment or development (e.g., hypertrophy, dystrophy).
  20. -stomy: Surgical creation of an opening (e.g., colostomy, tracheostomy).

These suffixes are used in various medical terms to describe conditions, procedures, diseases, and anatomical structures. When combined with root words and prefixes, they help create specific medical terms that convey precise meanings in the field of healthcare and medicine.

Here is a list of 20 common medical suffixes and their meanings:

SuffixMeaningExample
-algiapainneuralgia (nerve pain)
-celeherniainguinal hernia
-centesissurgical puncture to remove fluidthoracentesis (removal of fluid from the chest)
-ectomyremovalappendectomy (removal of the appendix)
-emiablood conditionanemia (low blood count)
-itisinflammationgastritis (inflammation of the stomach)
-logystudy ofcardiology (study of the heart)
-omatumorlipoma (fatty tumor)
-opathydiseaseneuropathy (nerve disease)
-osisconditionosteoporosis (bone loss)
-plastysurgical repairrhinoplasty (nose job)
-rrheaflow or dischargediarrhea (loose stool)
-scopeinstrument used to examineendoscope (instrument used to examine the inside of the body)
-scopyvisualizationcolonoscopy (visualization of the inside of the colon)
-tomyincisionlaparotomy (incision into the abdomen)
-uriaurinary conditionhematuria (blood in the urine)

These suffixes can be combined with prefixes and root words to form a wide variety of medical terms. For example, the suffix "-itis" can be combined with the root word "gastr-" (stomach) to form the term "gastritis" (inflammation of the stomach).

Learning the meanings of common medical suffixes can help you to expand your medical vocabulary and better understand the medical terms you encounter.

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