Medical suffixes are a must-know in any healthcare setting—study Picmonic’s medical terms suffix list so you can be a great communicator in medicine.
What are suffixes?
Suffixes are a group of letters added to the end of a word that alters its meaning or grammatical function. Prefixes, on the other hand, are added at the beginning of a word.
Medical suffixes are incredibly helpful to know in any healthcare field. They can be used to help you identify and explain conditions and procedures.
Common Suffixes in Medical Terminology
There are many suffixes you’ll encounter throughout your medical career. After you review the list below, we highly recommend reading our top tips on learning medical terminology to maximize your understanding.
1. -algia
This medical suffix stands for pain. Two examples are cephalgia (headache) and neuralgia (nerve pain).
2. -ectasia or -ectasis
Ectasia is also called ectasis. It means stretching, dilation, or enlargement. Gastrectasia, for example, means stretching or dilation of the stomach. Another example is bronchiectasis, the chronic dilation of the bronchi.
3. -ectomy
The suffix means surgical removal. Your two examples of -ectomy are hysterectomy and appendectomy: the surgical removal of the uterus and the removal of the appendix.
4. -itis
The definition of -itis is disease or inflammation. A common example is bronchitis, the inflammation of the bronchial tubes.
5. -genesis
This suffix means production or formation. Osteogenesis is the formation of bone, and pathogenesis is the development of a disease.
6. -gravida
Gravida is a reproductive term representing pregnancy. It’s to describe the number of pregnancies someone has had. Nulligravida is a person with no pregnancies, multigravida is multiple pregnancies, and primigravida means first pregnancy.
7. -penia
This is common in immune system terms. It means deficiency, lack, or too few. Two examples are leukopenia and osteopenia. Leukopenia is a decrease in white blood cells, and osteopenia is a decrease in bone density.
8. -pexy
Defined as fixation, an example of -pexy is cystopexy, fixing the bladder in place.
9. -plasty
A surgical term for correction or repair, an example of this suffix is a rhinoplasty, also known as nasal reconstruction.
10. -pnea
It’s a respiratory term! -pnea means breath or breathing. You may know the most common example for this suffix—sleep apnea, a sleep disorder where breathing stops temporarily and restarts.
11. -rrhaphy
Sutures! Herniorraphy is an example of this medical suffix. It’s the surgical repair of the hernia using sutures.
12. -rrhexis
-rrhexis is a rupture. For example, splennorrhexis is the rupture of the spleen.
13. -stasis
Known as standing still or standing, homeostasis is the most prevalent example of this medical suffix.
14. -stomy
A stomy is a surgical opening made in the human body. A colostomy, for example, is an opening in the colon that allows stool to drain into a bag.
15. -trophy
-trophy is growth or nourishment. Therefore, atrophy is when a body part, tissue, organ, or cell decreases in size.
Master medical terminology quickly
Picmonic helps healthcare students learn medical terms quickly and easily. It’s a research-proven study tool that thousands of healthcare students leverage to remember more in less time. Alongside study aids and quizzes, Picmonic features more than 300 medical terminology mnemonics to help you dominate your courses and exams!
