Medical Terminology Flashcards: Gastrointestinal System Terms, Digestion, Liver, GI Tract

Dysphagia means difficulty swallowing, from dys meaning difficult and phagia meaning swallowing or eating. It can occur at any point from the mouth to the stomach. Oropharyngeal dysphagia involves difficulty initiating a swallow, common in stroke patients and neurological disorders. Esophageal dysphagia is a sensation of food sticking after swallowing, caused by strictures, tumors, or motility disorders. Related terms include odynophagia meaning painful swallowing, aphagia meaning inability to swallow, and polyphagia meaning excessive eating or hunger.

Gastritis is inflammation of the stomach lining alone, combining gastr meaning stomach and itis meaning inflammation. Common causes include Helicobacter pylori infection, excessive alcohol, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Gastroenteritis is inflammation of both the stomach and intestines, combining gastr meaning stomach, enter meaning intestine, and itis meaning inflammation. It is commonly called the stomach flu and is usually caused by viral or bacterial infections.

Cholecystitis means inflammation of the gallbladder. The term breaks into chole meaning bile, cyst meaning sac or bladder, and itis meaning inflammation. Most cases are caused by gallstones blocking the cystic duct, leading to bile accumulation, pressure buildup, and inflammation. Symptoms include severe right upper quadrant pain especially after fatty meals, nausea, vomiting, and fever. Treatment for acute cholecystitis is usually cholecystectomy, meaning surgical removal of the gallbladder. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the standard approach.

Hepatomegaly means enlargement of the liver, from hepato meaning liver and megaly meaning enlargement. The normal liver sits mostly under the right rib cage. Hepatomegaly is detected on physical examination when the liver edge extends below the costal margin or on imaging studies. Common causes include hepatitis or liver inflammation, cirrhosis, fatty liver disease, heart failure causing venous congestion, liver cancer, and infiltrative diseases.

Cirrhosis is chronic scarring of the liver where healthy tissue is progressively replaced by fibrous scar tissue, impairing liver function. The term comes from the Greek kirrhos meaning orange-yellow, describing the appearance of the diseased liver. Major causes include chronic alcohol abuse, chronic hepatitis B and C infection, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Cirrhosis can lead to portal hypertension, ascites meaning fluid in the abdomen, jaundice meaning yellowing from bilirubin buildup, and hepatic encephalopathy meaning brain dysfunction from toxin accumulation.

Colonoscopy means visual examination of the colon using a flexible scope with a camera, from colo meaning colon and scopy meaning visual examination. Other important scopy terms include endoscopy meaning examination of internal structures generally, esophagogastroduodenoscopy or EGD meaning examination of the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum, bronchoscopy meaning examination of the airways, arthroscopy meaning examination of a joint, cystoscopy meaning examination of the bladder, and laparoscopy meaning examination of the abdominal cavity.

Hematochezia means the passage of bright red or maroon blood through the rectum, from hemato meaning blood and chezia meaning defecation. It typically indicates bleeding from the lower gastrointestinal tract, such as the colon or rectum, from sources like hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, or colorectal cancer. Melena means black, tarry, foul-smelling stools indicating digested blood from upper gastrointestinal bleeding, such as a stomach ulcer. The blood appears black because it has been partially digested by stomach acid and intestinal enzymes during transit.

Peritonitis means inflammation of the peritoneum, the thin tissue lining the inner wall of the abdomen and covering most abdominal organs. The term combines peritoneo meaning peritoneum and itis meaning inflammation. Peritonitis is usually caused by infection from a perforated organ such as a ruptured appendix, perforated ulcer, or bowel injury, allowing bacteria to enter the normally sterile peritoneal cavity. Symptoms include severe abdominal pain and tenderness, fever, nausea, and abdominal rigidity. ---