Basic Medical Terminology - R Trivia Quiz

Answer: kidney

The Latin word "ren", meaning kidney, gives us the word parts ren- and ren/o, having the same meaning. Some examples of usage include renal (pertaining to the kidney) and renin (an enzyme produced by the kidneys which helps regulate blood pressure).

Answer: bursting forth of blood

The suffixes -rrhage and -rrhagia denote a bursting forth of blood and are derived from the Latin "rhage" to break or burst. The medical term haemorrhage is perhaps the most well-known use of this suffix. Other examples include menorrhagia (which refers to excessive bleeding during the menstrual period) and metrorrhagia (which refers to excessive bleeding from the uterus which is not related to the menstrual period).

Answer: nose

Rhinos is Greek for nose. Medical terms containing rhin- or rhin/o relate to the nose, such as, rhinorrhoea (runny nose), rhinitis (infection/inflammation of the mucous membranes in the nose), and rhinoplasty (surgical repair of the nose). An interesting example of non-medical terminology is rhinoceros, which literally means "horny nose".

Answer: behind, backwards

Retro- is a Latin-based prefix meaning behind, backwards or in the past. It is often used in medical words to indicate that something is located behind a particular body part; for example, retro-ocular (behind the eye), and retrouterine (behind the uterus). Retroversion refers to the tipping or bending backwards of an entire organ, such as a retroverted uterus.

Answer: blood factor (antigen)

Rh is an abbreviation for the Rhesus factor which refers to a group of antigens (proteins) which may, or may not, be present on the surface of the red blood cells. Most people have the rhesus factor and are designated Rh-positive; that is, they will have blood groups A+, B+, AB+ or O+ (the + sign indicating the possession of the Rhesus factor). People who lack the rhesus factor are designated Rh-negative (they will have blood groups A-, B-, AB- or O-).

The name Rhesus is derived from the name of a type of monkey, the rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta), native to Asia, in which the factor was first recognised (in 1937).

Answer: discharge

The suffix -rrhoea means discharge and is derived from the Greek "rhein", to flow. In American spelling, the silent "o" is deleted (-rrhea). The most common example would most likely be diarrhoea, which comes from the Greek "diarrhoia" meaning "a flowing through" (dia- = through).

Sometimes the suffix -rrhoea is preceded by a word root indicating which body organ is affected by a discharge; for example, rhinorrhoea (nasal discharge) and otorrhoea (discharge from the ear).

Other examples include pyorrhoea (discharge of pus) and gonorrhoea (discharge of "seed"). Gonorrhoea is a sexually transmitted disease which involves an infection of the mucous membranes of the sex organs. The name refers to one of the main symptoms - a yellow discharge flowing from the penis in males. This was mistaken for semen ("seed") by ancient physicians.

Answer: surgical removal

The medical term resection refers to the surgical removal of a portion of any part of the body. For example, a bowel resection involves the removal of a diseased portion of the intestine. The word is derived from the Latin "resectio" which means "a trimming, pruning or cutting away".

Answer: study of x-rays

Radiology is the area of medicine that involves the use of various imaging techniques to visual the internal structures of the body. Originally this involved x-ray radiation but now includes imaging using other types of energy such as sound (ultrasound) and magnetism (MRI scanning).

The word part radi/o is derived from the Latin word "radius", meaning the spoke of a wheel, or a ray or beam of light. The medical term "radiology" was first used in 1900, shortly after the discovery of x-rays by Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895.

Answer: prescription (abbreviation)

Rx is a medical abbreviation which denotes the prescription of medication. The correct symbol is a capital R with an extended "leg" and with a stroke across the extension resembling an "x" (cannot be depicted with a regular keyboard). The "R" is derived from the Latin word "recipere" meaning "to take". Traditionally, physicians would write the symbol at the top of a prescription, saying, in effect, "take this".

The origin of the "x" is debatable. There are a number of theories, all of which relate to Greek, Roman and Egyptian mythology, which can be summarised as an invocation to the (various) gods for a favourable outcome.

Answer: stiffness of death

The Latin word "rigor" or "rigorem" means strength, hardness, strictness or stiffness. Rigor mortis translates as "the stiffness of death". This refers to the stiffening of the body of a corpse which is caused by chemical changes in the muscles after death. Rigor mortis is at its peak at approximately 13 hours after death, but can occur in as little as 4 hours post mortem, and dissipates after about 48 hours.