5 Terminology of the Integumentary, Skeletal, Muscular, and Nervous Systems
Learn to decode medical terms by identifying their word parts, interpreting terminology from four body systems, and using clinical abbreviations safely in context.
How to decode medical terms
Medical terms often combine word parts that describe a body structure, condition, or procedure. Learning those parts helps make unfamiliar terms easier to analyze, but a word part's meaning can vary with context.
A reliable decoding sequence
Identify the first, then the , and then the root or roots. Translate the parts, put their meanings into natural English, and check that the result fits the context.
A , usually o, links roots or connects a root to a that begins with a consonant. It generally has no separate meaning and is usually omitted before a beginning with a vowel: neur/itis, not neur/o/itis.
For example, oste/o/arthr/itis combines bone, joint, and inflammation to mean inflammation involving bone and joint. In arthr/o/centesis, the parts mean joint and surgical puncture to remove fluid. Context is important: myel/o can refer to bone marrow or the spinal cord, depending on the term.
Common prefixes and suffixes
Prefixes and suffixes frequently signal broad meanings across medical terminology.
a-, an- — without or absence of; anesthesia means loss of sensation.
brady- — slow; bradykinesia means slowness of movement.
dys- — difficult, abnormal, or painful; dysfunction means impaired function.
hyper-, hypo- — excessive or high, and low or under, respectively; examples are hypertonia and hypodermic.
-algia — pain; neuralgia means nerve pain.
-ectomy — surgical removal; laminectomy is removal of part of a vertebral arch.
-itis — inflammation; dermatitis means skin inflammation.
-logy — study of; neurology is the study of the .
-oma — mass or tumor. Interpret the complete term and its context; this alone does not establish whether a growth is cancerous.
-osis — a condition, often abnormal; scoliosis means lateral curvature of the spine.
-pathy — disease or disorder; neuropathy means nerve disorder.
-plasty — surgical repair; rhinoplasty is repair of the nose, and the also appears in musculoskeletal terms.
-scopy — visual examination; arthroscopy means visual examination of a joint.
-tomy — incision or cutting into; craniotomy is a surgical opening into the skull.
Integumentary terminology
The includes the skin and accessory structures such as hair, nails, and glands. Several roots identify these structures and related substances.
derm/o, dermat/o — skin; dermatitis is inflammation of the skin.
cutane/o — skin; subcutaneous means under the skin and combines sub-, cutane/o, and -ous.
trich/o — hair; trichology is the study of hair and its conditions.
onych/o — nail; onychomycosis is a fungal condition of a nail.
seb/o — sebum or oil; sebaceous means pertaining to sebum or oil.
hidr/o — sweat; anhidrosis means absence or deficiency of sweating.
The epidermis is the outer skin layer, and the dermis lies beneath it. A melanocyte is a cell that produces melanin, the pigment that contributes to skin and hair color. Alopecia means hair loss; its meaning is not transparently assembled from the common roots listed here, so it is useful to learn as a whole word.
Skeletal terminology
The includes bones, joints, cartilage, and ligaments. It supports and protects the body and works with muscles to enable movement.
oste/o — bone; osteitis means bone inflammation.
arthr/o — joint; arthralgia means joint pain.
chondr/o — cartilage; chondritis means cartilage inflammation.
crani/o — skull; craniotomy is an incision or opening into the skull.
cost/o — rib; intercostal means between the ribs.
spondyl/o, vertebr/o — vertebra or vertebral column; spondylitis means inflammation of a vertebra or the spine.
myel/o — bone marrow or spinal cord; use the surrounding term and body system to determine which meaning applies.
In osteomyelitis, oste/o means bone, myel means marrow, and -itis means inflammation; the term means inflammation involving bone and bone marrow. Arthroscopy combines arthr/o for joint and -scopy for visual examination, meaning visual examination of a joint.
Muscular terminology
Muscle terminology includes skeletal muscle, which usually moves the skeleton voluntarily; smooth muscle in many internal organs; and cardiac muscle in the heart.
my/o, myos/o — muscle; myalgia means muscle pain.
muscul/o — muscle; muscular means pertaining to muscle.
ten/o, tendin/o — tendon; tendinitis means inflammation of a tendon.
fasci/o — fascia, a connective-tissue sheet; fasciitis means inflammation of fascia.
kinesi/o — movement; bradykinesia means slowness of movement.
electr/o — electricity or electrical activity; an electromyogram is a record of electrical activity in muscle.
rhabd/o — rod-shaped or striated; rhabdomyolysis means breakdown of skeletal muscle tissue.
Myopathy combines my/o for muscle and -pathy for disease or disorder, meaning a muscle disorder. EMG is a common abbreviation for electromyogram or, in clinical use, electromyography, the test that records muscle electrical activity. The intended meaning depends on context.
terminology
The includes the (CNS)—the brain and spinal cord—and the (PNS), which includes nerves outside the brain and spinal cord.
neur/o — nerve or ; neuritis means nerve inflammation.
encephal/o — brain; encephalitis means brain inflammation.
cerebr/o — cerebrum; cerebral means pertaining to the cerebrum.
cerebell/o — cerebellum; cerebellar means pertaining to the cerebellum.
myel/o — spinal cord or bone marrow; use context to distinguish the meanings.
mening/o — meninges, the membranes around the brain and spinal cord; meningitis means inflammation of the meninges.
psych/o — mind; psychology is the study of the mind and behavior.
Polyneuropathy combines poly- for many, neur/o for nerve, and -pathy for disorder; it means a disorder affecting multiple nerves. Neurology combines neur/o for and -logy for study.
Abbreviations and safe use
Common abbreviations include CNS for , PNS for , EMG for electromyogram or electromyography, and MRI for magnetic resonance imaging. ROM commonly means range of motion, and Fx may mean fracture in clinical notes.
Abbreviations can have more than one meaning. Interpret them using context and the documentation standards used in the setting. When clarity or safety matters, write the term out rather than guessing.