InterActive Medical Terminology
Based on the best selling text: An Introduction to Medical terminology for Health Care (Fourth Edition) by A.R.Hutton published by Elsevier Ltd.
Radiology and Nuclear Medicine
The interactive learning material in this unit is arranged into an introduction and two short sections:
Click on a section and scroll down the page completing the exercises in the sequence they are presented.
Note: FlashCards and a check list of combining forms for this unit are at the end of Section 3.
Click on Radiological terms for exercises on words relating to radiology and nuclear medicine.
A short list of common medical words and abbreviations associated with radiology and nuclear medicine is available from Word Check
Radiology is the study of the diagnosis of disease by the use of radiant energy (radiation).In the past this was restricted to the use of X-rays to make an image of the internal components of the body. Today other forms of radiation are also used for diagnosis and treatment.
Radiation therapy (radiotherapy or radiation oncology) is the treatment of disease using high-energy rays either from an external source (teletherapy) or an internal, implanted radioactive substance (brachytherapy).
Nuclear medicine is a medical imaging specialty that uses radioactive materials called radioisotopes (or radionuclides) to diagnose and treat disease.
Two word roots are used to mean X-rays and their combining forms are shown with Roots 1 and 2:
| Root 1 | Radi- | from a Latin word radius meaning ray. Here radi/o means radiation or X-rays. |
| Combining form | Radi/o | X-rays |
| Root 2 | Roentgen- | named after W.K.Rontgen a German physicist who discovered X-rays. Here roentgen/o means roentgen rays or X-rays. Roentgen is his English name. |
| Combining form | Roentgen/o | X-rays |
Note radi/o and roentgen/o are used synonymously when referring to X-rays but words based on radi/o are more popular
Quick reference
| Radi/o | = |
X-rays |
| Roentgen/o | = |
X-rays |
Now learn the first set of suffixes by completing Dictionary Exercise 1. Remember repetition is very important as it helps fix the meanings into your memory. When you are satisfied you can remember their meanings continue with the exercises.
Dictionary Exercise 1
Word Exercise 1
Note the term radiograph in the previous exercise is used to means an X-ray picture/recording rather than radiogram as the latter name was initially used for a type of radio that played records and nothing to do with medicine.
Now learn the second set of suffixes in Dictionary Exercise 2. When you are satisfied you can remember their meanings continue with the exercises.
Dictionary Exercise 2
Now look at two other techniques that use X-rays, fluoroscopy and computed tomography:
Fluoroscopy
X-rays can be used to observe the movement of internal parts of the body using a technique known as fluoroscopy. The X-rays pass through the body onto a fluorescent screen which glows (that is emits light) generating a moving image of the organs the X-rays have passed through.
| Root 3 | Fluor- | from a Latin word fluere meaning to flow. Here fluor/o means emitting light, luminous. |
| Combining form | Fluor/o | luminous, fluorescent, flow of light |
Computed tomography
Computed tomography also called computed axial tomography or CAT scanning is a technique of making very detailed cross-sectional images of the body using X-rays.
| Root 4 | Tom- | from a Greek word tomos meaning a slice or section. Here tom/o means an X-ray of a slice through the body. |
| Combining form | Tom/o | slice, section (made using X-rays) |
Polytomography
This technique uses computed tomography to make images of many cross-sections through the body in different planes (poly- = many )
Now use the combining forms of roots relating to X-rays to build words in Word Exercise 2.
Word Exercise 2
Next practice spelling words relating to X-rays from their definitions in Word Exercise 3.
Word Exercise 3 Spelling
Next practice spelling words relating to X-rays from dictation in Word Exercise 4.
Word Exercise 4 Dictation
There are several other diagnostic techniques that use X-rays for example:
Teleradiography
This is technique of making a radiograph with the X-ray machine further away from the body than usual (1.8m) so the X-rays are parallel. (tele- = away from)
Cineradiography
This word is also used for the technique of making a moving X-ray or film of body structures. The pictures are made using the fluoroscope just described. Several medical terms use the combining forms of Root 5.
| Root 5 | Cine- | from a Greek word kinein meaning movement. Here cine/o means movement or motion. |
| Combining form | Cine- | movement , motion |
CLINICAL POINT |
||
 |
Cineangiocardiography |
technique of making a fluoroscopic recording of the heart and main vessels (a moving image) |
Quick reference
| Cine- | = |
movement |
| Fluor/o | = |
fluoroscopy, luminous |
| Tom/o | = |
slice |
The following techniques are used to produce images of the body without using X-rays:
Ultrasound
Ultrasound imaging also called ultrasonography,sonography and echography is the imaging of deep structures of the body by recording echoes of pulses of ultrasonic (sound) waves directed into the tissues. The strength of echoes is indicated by the brightness of dots that make up an ultrasound image. This technique is widely used to examine a fetus in the uterus of a pregnant woman, see Figure 1.
Fig. 1 Ultrasound image of a fetus
The combining forms of Roots 6, 7 and 8 refer to sound and echoes:
| Root 6 | Son- | from a Latin word sonus meaning sound. Here son/o means sound or ultrasound. |
| Combining form | Son/o | ultrasound |
| Root 7 | Ultra-son- | from a Latin word ultra- meaning beyond and sonus meaning sound. Here ultrason/o means ultrasound, that is sound beyond hearing. |
| Combining form | Ultrason/o | ultrasound |
| Root 8 | Echo- | from a Greek word echo meaning sound. Here ech/o means ultrasound echo. |
| Combining form | Echo- | ultrasound echo |
Thermography
Thermography is the technique of recording temperature differences throughout the body on film or computer monitor.
Our bodies radiate a range of infrared waves at different frequencies. The frequency depends on the temperature of the body. Thermography uses electronic equipment to detect infrared radiation coming from the body and displays it as an image on a screen. As tumors contain abnormally active cells, they give off more heat than the surrounding areas and this enables them to be detected. Thermography is currently being studied to see if its use in cancer diagnosis can be justified.
| Root 9 | Therm- | from a Greek word therme meaning heat. Here therm/o means heat. |
| Combining form | Therm/o | heat |
