Overview
This lecture covers key medical terminology related to the urinary system, focusing on combining forms, suffixes, prefixes, and adjective forms relevant to anatomy and pathology.
Combining Forms of the Urinary System
- Azoto refers to nitrogenous waste, as in azotemia.
- Bacterio means bacteria.
- Cysto denotes the urinary bladder.
- Glomerulo relates to the glomerulus.
- Glycoso refers to glucose or sugar.
- Hemo and hemato both mean blood.
- Hydro means water.
- Iatro refers to physician, medicine, or treatment.
- Idio means distinctive.
- Ketono stands for ketones.
- Litho means stone.
- Meato is meatus (an opening or passage).
- Nephro and reno both mean kidney.
- Nocti means night.
- Oligo means scanty or few.
- Peritoneo means peritoneum.
- Pyelo refers to the renal pelvis.
- Pyo means pus.
- Toxo means poison.
- Uretero is ureter; urethro is urethra.
- Urino and uro both mean urine.
- Veno means vein.
Suffixes in Urinary Terminology
- Algia means pain.
- Cele is protrusion.
- Ectasis means dilated.
- Ectomy means surgical removal.
- Emia is a blood condition.
- Genic means producing.
- Gram is a record; graphy is the process of recording.
- Lith means stone; lithiasis is a condition of stones.
- Logy is the study of.
- Lysis means to destroy.
- Malacia is abnormal softening.
- Megaly means enlarged.
- Meter is an instrument to measure.
- Oma means tumor.
- Ostomy is to surgically create an opening.
- Otomy means cutting into.
- Pathy means disease.
- Pexy is surgical fixation.
- Plasty is surgical repair.
- Ptosis means drooping.
- Rrhagia is abnormal flow.
- Sclerosis is hardening.
- Scope is an instrument to visually examine; scopy is the process of examining.
- Stenosis is narrowing.
- Tripsy means surgical crushing.
- Uria is a urine condition.
Prefixes in Urinary Terminology
- An means without.
- Anti means against.
- Dys means painful or difficult.
- Extra means outside of.
- Intra means within.
- Poly means many.
- Retro means backward.
Adjective Forms Related to the Urinary System
- Cystic: pertaining to the bladder.
- Glomerular: pertaining to the glomerulus.
- Meatal: pertaining to the meatus.
- Pyelitic: pertaining to the renal pelvis.
- Renal: pertaining to the kidney.
- Ureteral: pertaining to the ureter.
- Urethral: pertaining to the urethra.
- Urinary: pertaining to urine.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Glomerulus — a cluster of capillaries in the kidney involved in filtering blood.
- Renal pelvis — the funnel-shaped structure in the kidney that collects urine.
- Meatus — an opening or passage, especially in the urinary tract.
- Ureter — the tube carrying urine from kidney to bladder.
- Urethra — the tube carrying urine from bladder to outside the body.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review and memorize the combining forms, suffixes, prefixes, and adjective forms related to the urinary system.