DICTIONARY OF MEDICAL ACRONYMS and ABBREVIATIONS

984 Pages·2007·3.52 MB·English

DICTIONARY OF MEDICAL ACRONYMS & ABBREVIATIONS - 5th Ed. (2005)
FRONT MATTER
TITLE PAGE
Dictionary of Medical Acronyms & Abbreviations
5th Edition
Compiled and edited by
Stanley Jablonski

COPYRIGHT PAGE
ELSEVIER
SAUNDERS
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Dictionary of Medical Acronyms & Abbreviations
Copyright © 2005, Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2004108494
Previous editions copyrighted 2001, 1997, 1992, 1987 by Elsevier.
ISBN-13: 978-1-56053-632-1
ISBN-10: 1-56053-632-2
Acquisitions Editor: Linda Belfus
Chief Lexicographer: Douglas M. Anderson
Publishing Services Manager: Tina Rebane
Project Manager: Norman Stellander
Designer: Gene Harris
Printed in the United States of America
Last digit is the print number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
Acronyms and abbreviations are used extensively in medicine, science and technology for good reason⎯they
are more essential in such fields. It would be difficult to imagine how one could write down chemical and
mathematical formulas and equations without using abbreviations or symbols. In medicine, they are used as a
convenient shorthand in writing medical records, instructions, and prescriptions, and as space-saving devices in
printed literature. It is easier and more economical to write down the acronyms HETE and RAAS than their full
names 12-L-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid and renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, respectively.
The main reason for abbreviations is said to be economy. Some actually save space in print, such as acronyms
for the names of institutions and organizational units, as well as being convenient to use. Many are used for
other reasons, as for instance, when trying to be delicate, we may euphemistically refer to bowel movement as
BM, an unprinicipled individual as SOB, and body odor as BO. Also, it is sometimes difficult to fathom the
reasoning of bureaucratic acronym makers, who have created some tongue-twisting monstrosities, such as
ADCOMSUBORDCOMPHIBSPAC (for Administrative Command, Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet,
Subordinate Command).
Abbreviations and acronyms used in medicine can be grouped into two broad categories. The first consists of
official abbreviations and symbols used in chemistry, mathematics, and other sciences, and those designating
weights and measures, whose exact form, capitalization, and punctuation have been determined by official
governing bodies. In this category, they mean only one thing (e.g., kg is the symbol for kilogram and Hz for
hertz), and their form, capitalization, and punctuation have been established by the International System of
Units (Systeme International d'Unites). Abbreviations in the second group, on the other hand, may appear in a
variety of forms, the same abbreviation having a different number of letters, sometimes capitalized, at other
times not, with or without punctuation. Moreover, they may also have numerous meanings. The abbreviation
AP may mean alkaline phosphatase, acid phosphatase, action potential, angina pectoris, and many other things.
Editors of individual scientific publications make an effort to standardize the form of abbreviations and
symbols in their journals and books, but they generally vary from one publication to another.
This dictionary lists acronyms and abbreviations occurring with a reasonable frequency in the medical literature
that were identified by a systematic scanning of collections of books and periodicals at the National Library of
Medicine. Except as they take the form of Greek letters, pure geometric symbols are not included. Although we
have attempted to be as inclusive as possible, a book such as this one can never be complete, in spite of the
most diligent effort, and it is expected that some abbreviations and acronyms may have escaped detection and
others may have been introduced since completion of the manuscript.
Stanley Jablonski
PREFACE TO THE FIFTH EDITION
In the four years since the publication of the fourth edition of the Dictionary of Medical Acronyms &
Abbreviations, the coining of acronyms has continued at its usual furious pace, and the work of sifting through
the enormous volume of candidates for inclusion remains a challenging task. This new fifth edition, although
compiled with constant reference to its purpose as a convenient source for the most commonly used acronyms
and abbreviations, has nonetheless grown by about 12,000 new entries.
Some long-time users of the book may notice that the familiar Hanley & Belfus imprint has been replaced by
Elsevier's Saunders imprint. No matter what the imprint, however, the same care as always has been taken in
the selection of entries and the verification of their accuracy. The familiar format of boldface acronyms and
abbreviations followed by run-in meanings has been retained, allowing the book to be kept to a convenient size.
New terms have been drawn especially from the areas of virology, clinical trials, new technology, and medical
informatics. An important enhancement, not visible in this volume but important for the maintenance of the text
in the future, is the addition of the contents to the database that houses the well-known Dorland's Illustrated
Medical Dictionary, so that the same resources that help to make Dorland's the world's leading medical
dictionary can be used for the Dictionary of Medical Acronyms & Abbreviations.
It is an unfortunate fact that the use of abbreviations, although a helpful time-saver, occasionally leads to
ambiguity in interpretation. In some cases, especially in handwritten notes, this ambiguity rises to the level of
causing serious concern for patient safety, and for this reason the Joint Commission on Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) has created a list of abbreviations that are considered dangerous and should
not be used in a healthcare setting. The abbreviations included in this edition have been compared with
JCAHO's "Do not use" list, and those that occur on the list are so identified.
Even as this fifth edition is being prepared for publication, new acronyms and abbreviations are being added to
the already existing body, so that no compilation can ever be complete. I invite you to submit your own
suggestions for the next edition; this can be done over the Internet at http://www.dorlands.com; just click on the
link "Suggest a Word." Be sure that in doing so you will have performed a great service to the ranks of grateful
users (not to mention the grateful author and publisher) of the Dictionary of Medical Acronyms &
Abbreviations!
Stanley Jablonski
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author would like to thank Christopher Peterson, MD, PhD, of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for his continuing
interest in the book and for supplying several hundred new entries for this edition. The work of Tsung O.
Cheng, MD, of Washington, DC, was extremely useful for verifying acronyms for cardiology trials and is
gratefully acknowledged: Cheng TO: Acronyms of clinical trials in cardiology⎯1998. American Heart Journal
137:726-765, 1999.
SYMBOLS
GENETIC SYMBOLS

GREEK ALPHABET AND SYMBOLS

α Α alpha ω Ω omega β Β beta ο Ο omicron χ Χ chi φ Φ phi δ Δ delta (diagnosis; change) π Π pi ε Ε epsilon ψ
Ψ psi η Η eta ρ Ρ rho γ Γ gamma σ Σ sigma ι Ι iota τ Τ tau κ Κ kappa θ Θ theta λ Λ lambda υ Υ upsilon μ Μ
mu ξ Ξ xi ν Ν nu ζ Ζ zeta
A
A abnormal; abortion; absolute temperature; absorbance; acceptor; accommodation; acetone; acetum;
achondroplasia; acid; acidophil, acidophilic; acromion; actin; Actinomyces; activity [radiation]; adenine;
adenoma; adenosine; admittance; adrenalin; Adriamycin; adult; age; akinetic; alanine; albino [guinea pig];
albumin; allergologist, allergy; alpha [cell]; alveolar gas; ambulation; ampere; amphetamine; ampicillin;
amplitude; anaphylaxis; androsterone; anesthetic; angstrom, ngstr m unit; anode; Anopheles; antagonism;
anterior; antibody; antrectomy; apical; aqueous; area; argon; artery [Lat. arteria]; atomic weight; atrium;
atropine; auricle; auscultation; axial; axilla, axillary; before [Lat. ante]; blood group A; ear [Lat. auris]; mass
number; subspinale; total acidity; tumor limited to the bowel [Dukes classification]; tumor limited to the
mucosa [Astler-Coller classification]; water [Lat. aqua]; year [Lat. annum]
A [band] the dark-staining zone of a striated muscle
A1 aortic first sound; prostatic tumor less than 5% [Jewett staging system]
A-1, 2, 3, 4, 5 anterior cerebral artery segments 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
AI, AII, AIII angiotensin I, II, III
A2 prostatic tumor more than 5% [Jewett staging system]

A aortic second sound
2
ngstr m unit
cumulated activity; antinuclear antibody
a absorptivity; acceleration; accommodation; acidity; activated; ampere; anode; anterior; area; arterial blood;
arterial; artery [Lat. arteria]; atto-; autopsy; before [Lat. ante]; thermodynamic activity; total acidity; water
[Lat. aqua]

-18
a- atto- [10 ]
a sample y intercept of straight line
before [Lat. ante]
α see alpha
AA abampere; abdominal aorta; acetabular anteversion; acetic acid; achievement age; active alcoholic; active
assistive [range of motion]; active avoidance; acupuncture analgesia; acute appendicitis; adenine arabinoside;
adenylic acid; adjuvant arthritis; adrenal androgen; adrenocortical autoantibody; African American; aggregated
albumin; [bacterial] aggregative adherence; agranulocytic angina; alcohol abuse; Alcoholics Anonymous;
allergic alveolitis; alopecia areata; alveolo-arterial; aminoacetone; amino acid; aminoacyl; amyloid A;
anaplastic astrocytoma; anti-arrhythmic agent; anticipatory avoidance; antigen aerosol; aortic amplitude; aortic
aneurysm; aortic arch; aplastic anemia; arachidonic acid; arteries; ascending aorta; atlanto-axial; atomic
absorption; Australia antigen; autoanalyzer; automobile accident; axonal arborization
2AA 2-aminoanthracene
A&A aid and attendance; awake and aware
A-a alveolar-arterial; alveolar-atrial
aA abampere
aa amino acid; arteries [Lat. arteriae]
AAA abdominal aortic aneurysm/aneurysmectomy; acne-associated arthritis; acquired aplastic anemia; acute
anxiety attack; alacrimia-achalasia-addisonianism [syndrome]; American Academy of Addictionology;
American Academy of Allergy; American Association of Anatomists; androgenic anabolic agent; aneurysm of
ascending aorta; angiography of abdominal aorta; Area Agency on Aging; aromatic amino acid; arrest after
arrival
AAAD aromatic amino acid decarboxylase
AA/AD alcohol abuse/alcohol dependence
AAAE amino acid activating enzyme
AAAHC Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care
AAAHE American Association for the Advancement of Health Education
AAAI American Academy of Allergy and Immunology; American Association of Artificial Intelligence
AAALAC American Association for Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care
AAAM Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine
AAAS American Association for the Advancement of Science
AAASPS African-American Antiplatelet Stroke Prevention Study
AAAV avian adeno-associated virus
AAB American Association of Bioanalysts; aminoazobenzene
AABB American Association of Blood Banks; axis-aligned bounding boxes
AABCC alertness (consciousness), airway, breathing, circulation, cervical spine
AABS automobile accident, broadside
AABV Ascogaster argentifrons bracovirus
AAC antibiotic-associated [pseudomembranous] colitis; antimicrobial agent--induced colitis; augmentative
and alternative communication
AACA acylaminocephalosporanic acid
6′AAC-2″APH 6′-acetyltransferase-2″-phosphotransferase
AACC American Association for Clinical Chemistry
AACCN American Association of Critical Care Nurses
AACD aging-associated cognitive decline
AACE acute acquired comitant esotropia
AACEM Association of Academic Chairs in Emergency Medicine
AACG acute angle closure glaucoma
AACHP American Association for Comprehensive Health Planning
AACIA American Association for Clinical Immunology and Allergy
AACN American Association of Colleges of Nursing; American Association of Critical-Care Nurses