Download Medical Terminology: Understanding Key Concepts and more Exams Nursing in PDF only on Docsity! HESI A2 Vocab (5th Edition) Abstain To voluntarily refrain from something. (EX: The dental hygienist instructed the patient to ____ from smoking to improve his breath odor.) Accountable To be responsible. (EX: Paramedics are _____ for maintaining up-to-date knowledge of resuscitation techniques.) Acute Sudden, intense (EX: The nurse administered the prescribed pain medication to the patient who was experiencing ____ pain after surgery.) Adhere To hold fast or stick together. (EX: The tape must ____ to the patient's skin to hold the bandage in place.) Adverse Undesired, possibly harmful. (EX: Vomiting is an ____ effect of many medications.) Ambivalent Uncertain, having contradictory feelings (EX: After learning that she had breast cancer, the patient was ____ about having a mastectomy) Ambulate To walk (EX: The patient left the hospital as soon as he was able to ____ independently) Antigen A toxin or other foreign substance that induces an immune response in the body, especially the production of antibodies (Anti = against; Gen = people) Apply To place, put on, or spread something (EX: The nurse will ____ a medication to the wound before covering the wound with a bandage) Apprized appreciated (Ex: The child _____ her father's authority and behaved herself in church) Assent Brief, to the point (EX: When teaching a patient, the nurse tries to be ____ so that the instructions will be easy to remember) Congenital Present at birth (EX: The patient had surgery as a child to correct a ____ heart defect) Consistency Degree of viscosity; how thick or thin a fluid is in relation to how if flows (EX: The respiratory therapist noticed that the mucus the patient was coughing was of a thin, watery ____) Constrict To draw together or become smaller (EX: The nurse knows that the small blood vessels of the skin will ___ when ice is applied to the skin) Contingent Dependent (EX: They hygienist told the patient that a healthy mouth is ____ on careful daily brushing and flossing) Contraindication A reason why something is not advisable or should not be done. (EX: The patient's excessive bleeding was a ____ for dischcarge from the hospital) Convulsive Having or causing convulsions, i.e., violent shaking of the body. (EX: Epilepsy is a ____ disorder) Copious Maximal (E.g. The wound exhibited signs of ____ drainage requiring medical intervention) Cursory Quick, perfunctory, not thorough (EX: During triage, the paramedic gave each accident victim a ____ examination) Defecate Expel feces (EX: The unlicensed assistive personnel helped the patient to the toilet when the patient needed to ____) Deficit A deficiency or lack of something (EX: The therapist explained that the patient will experience a fluid ____ if the patient continues to perspire heavily during exercise without drinking enough fluids) Depress Press downward (EX: The nurse will ____ the patient's skin to see if any swelling is present) Depth Downward measurement from a surface (EX: The nurse measures the ____ of a wound by inserting a cotton swab into the wound) Destruction the action or process of causing so much damage to something that it no longer exists or cannot be repaired. (De = Apart from; Struction = Build) Deteriorating Worsening (EX: The dental hygienist explains that the condition of the patient's gum is ____ and treatment by the dentist is needed right away) Diagnosis Identification of an injury or disease (EX: The patient received a ____ of pancreatitis) Diffuse Spread over a large area; generalized. (EX: The patient's swelling was originally limited to a small area but is now ____). Dilate Epilogue A section of speech at the end of a book or play that serves as a comment on or a conclusion to what has happened (Epi = in addition; Logue = word) Equilibruim Balance (EX: The nurse suspected that an ear infection was the cause of the patient's lack of ____) Etiology The origin or cause of a disease or condition (EX: The nurse interviewed the patient to determine the ____ of the patient's food poisoning) Exacerbate To make worse or more severe (EX: The physical therapist recognized that too much exercise would ______ the patient's breathing difficulties) Exogenous Produced outside the body (Ex: ______ factors were responsible for his chronic illness) Exposure To come in contact (EX: The nurse taught the parents of a newborn to avoid ____ to people with severe infections) Extension Lengthening; unbending a joint (Ex: The physical therapist helped the patient preform ____ and flexion exercises) Fallacy Untruth (Ex: While on the witness stand, the defendant told a ____ about the murder) Famished Hungry (Ex: After practice, the girls' softball team stated, "We're _____!") Fatal Resulting in death (EX: The EMT arrived too late to save any lives at the scene of the ____ car accident) Fatigue Extreme tiredness, exhaustion (EX: The dietician explained to the patient that eating more iron-rich foods may help reduce feelings of ____) Febrile Related to or caused by a fever (EX: An elevated body temperature is a sign of a ____ infection) Fictitious Not real (Ex: In some novel, characters may be ____) Flexion Bending a joint (EX: Arthritis can make ____ of the fingers difficult) Flushed Reddened or ruddy appearance (EX: The therapist observed that the patient's face was ____ after the pt. completed the exercises) Gastrointestinal Of or relating to the stomach and the intestines (EX: The patient was diagnosed with a ____ disease) Hematologic Of or relating to blood (EX: Pregnancy can put a women at risk for anemia, which is a ____ disorder) Hydration Maintenance of body fluid balance (EX: The nurse explains that adequate ____ helps keep the skin soft and supple) Ingest To swallow for digestion (EX: The EMT my contact the poison control center when providing emergency care for a child who has ____ cleaning fluid) Initiate To begin or put into practice (EX: The nurse decided to ____ safety measures to prevent injury) Insidious So gradual as to not become apparent for a long time (EX: The physician explained that the cancer probably started years ago but had not been detected because its spread was ____) Inspect look at (someone or something) closely, typically to assess their condition or to discover any shortcomings. (In = in; sect = see) Instilled Infuse (Ex: The general tried to ____ a hope of victory in his troops) Intact In place, unharmed (EX: The nurse observed the fact that the patient's bandage was ______) Intravenous Existing or taking place within, or administered into, a vein or veins. (Intra = within; venous = vein) Intubate To insert a tube into something (usually a pt. airway) (EX: The patient was unable to breath effectively, so the health care provider had to ____ immediately) Invasive Inserting or entering into a body part (EX: The lab tech is careful when obtaining blood samples bc this ____ procedure may cause problems such as infection or bruising) Kinetic Of or related to movement (EX: ____ energy from the batter of the nurse's tablet caused the device to feel warm to the touch) Labile Changing rapidly and often (EX: Because the child's temperature was _____, the nurse instructed the assistant to check the temp. frequently) Laceration Cut; tear (After the accident, the medic examined the pt's _____) Latent Present but not active or visible (EX: The ____ infection produced symptoms only when the patients condition was weakened from another illness) Lethargic Difficult to arouse (EX: The assistant observed that on the morning after a patient received a sleeping pill, the pt was too ____ to eat breakfast) Manifestation An indication or sign of a condition (EX: The dietician looked for ____ of poor nutrition, such as excessive weight loss and poor skin condition) Open (EX: The nurse checked to see whether the intravenous needle was ____ before giving the pt a medication) Pathogenic Causing or able to cause disease (EX: Viruses and bacteria are ____ organisms) Ponder Meditate (Ex: The writer would _____ his next chapter.) Posterior Located behind; in the back (EX: The dentist examined the ____ surface of the tooth for a cavity) Potent Producing a strong effect (EX: The ____ medication immediately relieved the patient's pain) Potential Capable of occuring or likely to occur (EX: Because the patient was very weak, the physical therapist felt the patient had a high ____ for falling) Precaution Preventive measure (EX: The lab tech. wore gloves as a ____ against blood contamination) Precipitouos Rapid, uncontrolled (EX: The paramedic assisted the pregnant woman during a ____ delivery in her home) Predict say or estimate that (a specified thing) will happen in the future or will be a consequence of something. (Pre = before; dict = say) Predispose To make more susceptible or more likely to occur (EX: The dietician explains that high dietary fat intake ____ some people for heart disease) Preexisting Already present (EX: The nurse notified the health care provider that the pt had a ____ condition that might lead to complications during the emergency surgery) Primary First or most significant (Ex: The patient's _____ concern was when he could return to work after the operation) Lateral On the side (EX: The physical therapist recommended exercises to help increase the strength of the patient's ____ muscles) Priority Of great importance (Ex: The laboratory technician was gentle when inserting the needle because it is a high _____ to ensure the patient does not experience excessive pain and discomfort during the procedure) Progeny Offspring (Ex: The president expressed concerns about the _____ of the country) Prognosis The anticipated or expected course or outcome (Ex: The health care provider explained that, with treatment, the patient's _____ was for a long and healthy life) Rationale The underlying reason (Ex: To ensure that the patient will follow the diet instructions, the medical assistant explains the ____ for the low-salt diet) Recur To occur again (Ex: To ensure that a tooth cavity does not ____, the dental hygienist instructs the patient to use toothpaste with fluoride regularly) Remit Send (money) in payment or as a gift (Re = again; mit = send) Being equal or the same size, shape, and relative position (Ex: The paramedic observed that the movement of both sides of the patient was ____ after the accident) Symptom An indication of a problem (Ex: The nurse recognized that the patient's weakness was a ____ of bleeding after surgery) Syndrome Group of symptoms that, when occurring together, reflect a specific disease or disorder (Ex: After reviewing the patient's symptoms, which included pain and tingling in the hand and fingers, the health care provider made a diagnosis of carpal tunnel _____) Therapeutic Of or relating to the treatment of a disease or disorder (Ex: ______ diets may include calorie and salt restrictions) Toxic Causing harm, poisonous (Ex: The pediatric health care provider recommended that the parents of a toddler keep all ____ substances out of the toddler's reach) Transdermal Cross through the skin (Ex: The health care provider prescribed a _____ nicotine patch for a patient participating in the smoking cessation program) Trasmission Transfer, such as of a disease, from one person to another (Ex: Nurses should wash their hands to prevent the ____ of infections) Transport take or carry (people or goods) from one place to another by means of a vehicle, aircraft, or ship. (Trans = across; port = carry) Trauma Injury, wound (Ex: The accident victim had severe facial ____) Triage Process used to determine the priority of treatment for patients according to the severity of a patient's condition and the likelihood of benefit from the treatment. (Ex: When the paramedics arrived at the scene of the accident, they had to _____ the patients) Ubiquitous Being or seeming to be everywhere at once (Ex: The patient noticed the ______ "no smoking" signs in the clinic) Urinate Excrete or expel urine (Ex: The patient was instructed to _____ into the container so the nurse could send the urine sample to the laboratory) Vascular Of or relating to blood vessels (Ex: The patient underwent _____ surgery for the repair of an abnormal aortic aneurysm) Virulent Extremely harmful and severe (Ex: The ____ infection required an aggressive treatment regimen) Virus Microscopic infectious agent capable of replicating only in living cells, usually causing infectious diseases (Ex: A person with a cold who goes shopping can transmit the ____ to others) Vital Essential (Ex: The paramedic knows that it is ____ to learn what type of poison was taken when caring for the poison victim)