Medical abbreviations

Medical abbreviations were made to quickly but accurately document. Here’s a list of medical terminologies that you should know.

Abbreviations & Acronyms	Meaning
aa	Of each, equal parts
ABR	Absolute bed rest
Abd.	Abdomen
ac	Before meals
AD	Admitting diagnosis
A&D	Admission and discharge
Ad lib	As desired, if the patient so desired
ADL	Activities of daily living
Adm.	Admission
Ad. Spec.	Admission  urine specimen
A.M. or a.m., AM or am	Morning
amb	Ambulation, walking, ambulatory,
	able to walk
amt.	Amount
AP or A.P.	Appendectomy
aqua	Water or H2O
@	At
Approx.	Approximately
B&B or b&b	Bowel and bladder training
bid or B.I.D. or b.i.d.	Twice a day
b.m. or B.M.	Bowel movement, feces
B.P. or BP	Blood pressure
BR or br or B.R. or b.r.	Bedrest
BRP or B.R.P. or brp	Bathroom privileges
BSC or bsc	Bedside commode
°C	Celsius degree (or centigrade)
c	With
Ca	Cancer
Cath.	Catheter
CBC or C.B.C.	Complete blood count
cc or c.c	Cubic centimeter
CCU or C.C.U	Cardiac care unit/ coronary care unit
CBR or C.B.R. or cbr	Complete bed rest
C/O or c/o	Complaint of
CO2	Carbon dioxide
CS or C.S. or c.s	Central supply
CSD or csd or C.S.D	Central service department
CSR or csr and C.S.R	Central supply room
CVA or C.V.A	Cerebrovascular accident or stroke
CPR or C.P.R	Cardiopulmonary resuscitation
dc or d/c	Discontinue
del. M. Or d.r., or DR	Delivery room
Disch or dish or D/C	Discharge
D. % C. or D&C	Dilatation and curettage
drsg.	Dressing
DOA or D.O.A	Dead on arrival
Dr. or Dr	Doctor
DX	Diagnosis
ECG or EKG	Electrocardiogram
ED or E.D.	Emergency department
EEG or E.E.G.	Electroencephalogram
EENT or E.E.N.T.	Eye, ears, nose and throat
E. or E	Enema
ER or E.R.	Emergency room
°F	Fahrenheit degree
F. or Fe. or F or Fe	Female
FBS or F.B.S	Fasting blood sugar
FF or F.F.	Forced feeding or forced fluids
ft	Foot
Fx	Fracture
Fx urine	Fractional urine
gal	Gallon
GI or G.I.	Gastrointestinal
gt	One drop
gtt	Two or more drops
Gtt or G.T.T.	Glucose tolerance test
GU or G.U	Genitourinary
Gyn. or G.Y.N.	Gynecology
H2O	Water or aqua
HOB	Head of bed
hr	Hour
HS or hs	Bedtime or hour of sleep
ht	Height
hyper	Above or high
hypo	Below or low
H.W.B. or hwb or HWB	Hot water bottle
ICU or I.C.U.	Intensive care unit
I&O or I.&O.	Intake and output
Irr	Irregular
Isol. Or isol	Isolation
IV or I.V.	Intravenous
L	Liter
Lab. or lab	Laboratory
lb	Pound
LVN or L.V.N	Licensed vocational nurse
M	Male
Mat	Maternity
MD or M.D.	Medical doctor
Meas	Measure
mec	Meconium
med	Medicine
min	Minute
ml	Milliliter
Mn or mn or M/n	Midnight
N.A. or N/A	Nursing aide or nursing assistant
n/g tube or ng. tube or N.G.T.	Nasogastric tube
noct	At night
NP	Neuropsychiatric or nursing procedure
NPO or N.P.O	Nothing by mouth
nsy	Nursery
O2	Oxygen
OB or O.B.	Obstetrics
Obt or obt.	Obtained
OJ or O.J.	Orange juice
Orb.	Orderly
OOB or O.O.B.	Out of bed
OPD or O.P.D.	Outpatient department
OR or O.R.	Operating room
Ortho	Orthopedics
OT or O.T	Occupational therapy or oral temperature
oz.	Ounce
PAR or P.A.R.	Postanesthesia room
Pc	After meals
Ped or Peds	Pediatrics
Per	by, through
p.m. or P.M., pm or PM	Afternoon
PMC or P.M.C	Post Mortem care
PN or P.N.	Pneumonia
po	By mouth
post or p	after
postop or post op	Postoperative
post op spec	After surgery urine specimen
PP	Postpartum (after delivery)
PPBS	Postprandial blood sugar
pre	Before
prn or p.r.n.	Whenever necessary, when required
preop or pre op	Before surgery
pre op spec	Urine specimen before surgery
prep	Prepare the patient for surgery by shaving the skin.
Pt or pt	Patient; pint
PT or P.T.	Physical therapy
q	Every
qd	Every day
qh	Every hour
q2h	Every 2 hours
q3h	Every 3 hours
q4h	Every 4 hours
QHS or qhs	Every night at bed time/ hour of sleep
qid or Q.I.D.	Four times a day
qam or q am or q.a.m.	Every morning
qod or Q.O.D	Every other day
qs	Quantity sufficient, as much as required
qt	quart
r or R	rectal or Rectal
Rm or rm	Room
RN or R.N.	Registered nurse
Rom or R.O.M.	Range of motion
RR or R Rm.	Recovery room
Rx	Prescription or treatment ordered by a physician
s or ?	Without
S&A	Sugar and acetone
S&A test or S.& A. test	Sugar and acetone test
S&K or S.& K. test	Sugar and ketone test
SOB	Shortness of breath
sos	Whenever emergency arises; only if necessary
SPD	Special purchasing department
Spec or spec.	Specimen
ss or ??	One-half
SSE or S.S.E.	Soapsuds enema
Stat	At once, immediately
STD	Sexually transmitted disease
Surg	Surgery
tid or T.I.D.	Three times a day
TLC or tlc	Tender loving care
TPR	Temperature, pulse, respiration
TWE	Tap water enema
U/a or U/A or u/a	Urinalysis
Ung.	Ointment, unguentine
VDRL	Test for syphilis
V.S or VS	Vital signs
WBC or W.B.C.	White blood count
w/c	Wheel chair
wc or W.C.	Ward clerk
wt	Weight

To effectively communicate either through oral communication and documentation, we healthcare workers should have a sound knowledge about the different abbreviations and acronyms used. Here are some of the acronyms and abbreviations that you might see on charts or documents.

List of Medical and Nursing Abbreviations & Acronyms

A / G	albumin / globulin ratio
AAL	anterior Axillary Line
ABG	arterial blood gases
AC	before eating
ACE	angiotensin converting enzyme
ACL	Anterior Cruciate Ligament
ACLS	advanced cardiac life support
ACTH	adrenocorticotropic hormone
ADH	antidiuretic hormone
ADL	activities of daily living
ADSF	Anterior Decomposition Spinal Fusion
AFB	acid-fast bacilli
AFP	alpha-fetoprotein
AGA	appropriate for gestational age
AGN	Acute Glomerulonephritis
AI	aortic insufficiency
AIDS	acquired immune deficiency syndrome
AKA	Above Knee Amputation
AKA	above knee amputation
ALD	alcoholic liver disease
ALL	acute lymphocytic leukemia
ALP	alkaline phosphatase
ALT	alanine transaminase, alanine aminotransferase
APR	Abdominoperineal Resection
ARF	Acute Renal Failure
ASA	Acute Surgical Abdomen
ATN	acute tubular necrosis
AU	both ears
AV	atrioventricular
ad lib	as much as needed
B.S.	Bachelor of Science
B/K	below knee
BAT	Blunt Abdominal Trauma
BIH	Bilateral Inguinal Hernia
BKA	Below Knee Amputation
BM	bowel movement or breast milk
BX	biopsy
c	with
C/O	complaining of
CA	calcium, cancer, carcinoma
CAA	crystalline amino acids
CABG	coronary artery bypass graft
CAD	coronary artery disease
CAPD	continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis
CAT	computerized axial tomography
CA	Cancer
CBC	complete blood count
CBD	common bile duct
CBDE	Common Bile Duct Exploration
CBD	Common Bile Duct
CBG	capillary blood gas
CBI	continuous bladder irrigation
CBS	capillary blood sugar
CC	chief complaint
CCK	cholecystokinin
CCPD	continuous cyclic peritoneal dialysis
CCU	clean catch urine or cardiac care unit
CCV	critical closing volume
CF	cystic fibrosis
CHF	congestive heart failure
CHO	carbohydrate
CI	cardiac index
CKD	Chronic Kidney Disease
CLEA	Continuous Lumbar Epidural Anesthesia
CLT	Clinical Laboratory Technician
CML	chronic myelogenous leukemia
CN	cranial nerves
CNS	central nervous system
CO	cardiac output
COM	Chronic Otitis Media
COPD	chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
CP	chest pain, cleft palate
CPD	cephalo-pelvic disproportion
CPK	creatinine phosphokinase
CPP	cerebral perfusion pressure
CPR	cardiopulmonary resuscitation
CRCL	creatinine clearance
CRF	chronic renal failure
CRT	capillary refill time
CSF	cerebrospinal fluid
CT	computerized tomography
CVA	cerebral vascular accident, costovertebral angle
CVP	central venous pressure
D3	Distal Third
D5W	5% dextrose in water
DAT	diet as tolerated
DC	(dc) discontinue
DIC	disseminated intravascular coagulopathy
DIH	Direct Inguinal Hernia
DKA	diabetic ketoacidosis
DL	Direct Laryngoscopy
DM	diabetes mellitus
DNA	deoxyribonucleic acid
DNR	do not resuscitate
DOA	dead on arrival
DOE	dyspnea on exertion
DPT	diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus
DTR	deep tendon reflexes
DVT	deep venous thrombosis
DX	diagnosis
EAA	essential amino acids
EBL	estimated blood loss
EBV	Epstein-Barr Virus
ECCE	Extra Capsular Cataract Extraction
ECF	extracellular fluid, extended care facility
ECG	electrocardiogram
ECT	electroconvulsive therapy
EDC	Extensor Digitorum Communis
EDH	Epidural Hematoma
EEA	End to end Anastomosis
EEL	Emergency Exploratory Laparotomy
EENT	eye, ear, nose and throat
EFAD	essential fatty acid deficiency
EGD	Esophagogastroduodenoscopy
EMG	electromyogram
EMV	eyes, motor, verbal response (Glasgow coma scale)
ENT	ears, nose, and throat
EOM	extraocular muscles
ERCP	Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography
ESR	erythrocyte sedimentation rate
ESRD	end stage renal disease
ET	endotracheal tube
ETT	endotracheal tube
EUA	examination under anesthesia
FBE	Foreign Body Extraction
FBS	fasting blood sugar
FCU	Flexor Carpi Ulnaris
FDA	Food & Drug Administration
FDP	Flexor Digitorum Profundus
FDS	Flexor Digitorum Superficial
FESS	Functional Endoscopic Sinus Surgery
FEV	forced expiratory volume
FFP	fresh frozen plasma
FIA	Fistula in Ano
FNP	Family Nurse Practitioner
FTSG	Full Thickness Skin Grafting
GB	gallbladder
GC	gonorrhea
GCS	Glascow Coma Scale
GERD	gastroesophageal reflux disease
GETA	General Endotracheal Anesthesia
GFR	glomerular filtration rate
GI	gastrointestinal
GSW	Gunshot Wound
GTT	glucose tolerance test
GU	genitourinary
HB	hemoglobin
HBP	high blood pressure
HCG	human chorionic gonadotropin
HCO3	bicarbonate
HCT	hematocrit
HD	hemodialysis
HDL	high density lipoprotein
HEENT	head, eyes, ears, nose, throat
HPT	Hemoperitoneum
I & D	Incision & Drainage
IBG	Iliac Bone Graft
ICS	Intercostal Space
IIH	Indirect Inguinal Hernia
IJ	Intrajugular
IOC	Intraoperative Cholangiogram