List of medical abbreviations

Medical abbreviations are a shorthand way of writing and talking by medical professionals (people who work to help sick people) to hurry explanation of diseases (sickness), patients, or medicines (drugs).
This shorthand can include shortening (making less lengthy) of longer disease names, by cutting the word down to its base (the Latin or Greek part that makes it). Medical professionals also create (make) words that mean something. An example of this is "stat", used to indicate (show) that something needs to be hurried (done faster). It is from the Latin "base word" statim, meaning quick. A very commonly (often) used shorthand is shortening things on order forms for patients. An example is, "pre-op" meaning |pre-operation| (patient who is being prepared for surgery). These can be very complicated and extensive (meaning there is a lot of them).
Despite the fact that this shorthand might make it difficult for new Interns (new doctors) or recently trained nurses to get used to this unofficial language, it has been shown to improve (make better) the speed of treatment in hospitals.
Medical authorities in the United Kingdom and elsewhere have questioned the use of medical shorthand; believing that it can lead to mistakes being made due to less clear communication and have advised doctors to avoid its use.
Medications.
How to take medications.
Medications can be given in different ways (routes). Abbreviations for the most common routes are:
When to take medications.
Doctors use many different abbreviations to say when to take a medication. It is helpful to remember that doctors use the letter "q" to stand for "every. For example, "qAM" stands for "every AM" (morning).
Here are some of the most common:
Drugs &amp; medications.
Some drugs and medications have common abbreviations. Here are some examples:
About the body.
Common abbreviations that have to do with the human body include:
Medical specialties.
There are many different kinds of medical specialties. These are kinds of doctors that treat people with certain kinds of problems. Abbreviations for medical specialties include:
Health problems.
Many health problems have common abbreviations. For example:
Infections.
Common abbreviations for infections include:
Mental health problems.
Common abbreviations for mental health problems include:
Tests &amp; treatments.
Doctors often talk about common medical tests and treatments by using abbreviations. Examples of these abbreviations include:
Other abbreviations.
Other abbreviations used in medicine include: