Medical Terminology for Phlebotomy
Understanding medical terminology is essential for effective communication in healthcare settings and succeeding on your phlebotomy certification exam. This comprehensive guide covers essential prefixes, suffixes, root words, abbreviations, laboratory terms, and anatomical language you'll encounter daily as a phlebotomist.
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Understanding Medical Word Structure
Most medical terms are built from Greek and Latin word parts. Understanding how to break down terms into their component parts — prefix, root, and suffix — makes it easier to learn and remember thousands of medical terms.
Word Part Structure
Prefix (Beginning)
Appears at the beginning of a word and modifies the meaning. Example: hypo- (below, under) + glycemia = hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
Root Word (Middle)
The core meaning of the term, often refers to a body part or system. Example: hem- or hemat- (blood), cardi- (heart), ven- (vein)
Suffix (End)
Appears at the end and often indicates a procedure, condition, or disease. Example: -itis (inflammation), -ectomy (surgical removal), -ology (study of)
Example Breakdown:
Phlebotomy: phlebo- (vein) + -tomy (incision, cutting into) = cutting into a vein (venipuncture)
Hematology: hemato- (blood) + -logy (study of) = study of blood
Thrombocytopenia: thrombo- (clot) + cyto- (cell) + -penia (deficiency) = deficiency of clotting cells (low platelet count)
Common Medical Prefixes
Mastering common prefixes helps you understand unfamiliar medical terms. These prefixes appear frequently on certification exams and in clinical practice.
a-, an-
without, absence of
anemia (without blood/low RBC)
anti-
against
anticoagulant (against clotting)
brady-
slow
bradycardia (slow heart rate)
tachy-
fast
tachycardia (fast heart rate)
hypo-
below, under, deficient
hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
hyper-
above, excessive
hyperglycemia (high blood sugar)
poly-
many, much
polycythemia (too many RBCs)
macro-
large
macrocyte (large red blood cell)
micro-
small
microcyte (small red blood cell)
pan-
all
pancytopenia (deficiency of all cell types)
pre-
before
preanalytical (before analysis)
post-
after
postprandial (after eating)
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Common Root Words Related to Blood and Circulation
These root words are fundamental to phlebotomy and appear frequently in clinical documentation and test orders.
hem-, hemat-, hemo-
blood
hematology, hemoglobin, hemolysis
phleb-, ven-
vein
phlebotomy, venipuncture, intravenous
arter-
artery
arterial puncture, arteriosclerosis
cardi-, cardio-
heart
cardiac enzymes, cardiology
angi-
vessel
angiography, angioplasty
thromb-
clot
thrombosis, thrombocyte (platelet)
leuk-
white
leukocyte (white blood cell), leukemia
erythr-
red
erythrocyte (red blood cell)
cyt-, cyto-
cell
cytology, thrombocyte, leukocyte
glyc-, gluco-
sugar, glucose
glycemia, glucose, hyperglycemia
hepat-
liver
hepatitis, hepatic function panel
ren-, nephr-
kidney
renal function, nephrology
Common Medical Suffixes
Suffixes often indicate conditions, procedures, or diagnostic terms. Understanding these helps you interpret test orders and clinical documentation.
-emia
blood condition
anemia, leukemia, hyperglycemia
-penia
deficiency, decrease
thrombocytopenia, leukopenia
-osis
abnormal condition, increase
thrombosis, leukocytosis
-itis
inflammation
phlebitis, hepatitis, arthritis
-lysis
breakdown, destruction
hemolysis (RBC breakdown)
-ology
study of
hematology, cardiology, pathology
-tomy
incision, cutting into
phlebotomy, arteriotomy
-pathy
disease
neuropathy, cardiomyopathy
-stasis
stopping, controlling
hemostasis (stopping bleeding)
-gram
record, picture
electrocardiogram (ECG/EKG)
-sclerosis
hardening
arteriosclerosis (hardened arteries)
-centesis
surgical puncture to remove fluid
thoracentesis, paracentesis
Essential Phlebotomy Abbreviations
Abbreviations appear on test requisitions, patient charts, and certification exams. You must recognize these instantly to perform your job safely and efficiently.
Common Laboratory Tests
CBC
Complete Blood Count
CMP
Comprehensive Metabolic Panel
BMP
Basic Metabolic Panel
PT/INR
Prothrombin Time / International Normalized Ratio
PTT/aPTT
Partial Thromboplastin Time / activated PTT
LFT
Liver Function Tests
HbA1c
Hemoglobin A1c (glycosylated hemoglobin)
ESR
Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate
TSH
Thyroid Stimulating Hormone
BNP
B-type Natriuretic Peptide (heart failure marker)
Troponin
Cardiac enzyme (heart attack marker)
BUN
Blood Urea Nitrogen (kidney function)
Blood Cell Types & Components
RBC
Red Blood Cell (erythrocyte)
WBC
White Blood Cell (leukocyte)
PLT
Platelet (thrombocyte)
Hgb or Hb
Hemoglobin
Hct
Hematocrit (% of blood that is RBCs)
MCV
Mean Corpuscular Volume (RBC size)
Clinical & Procedural Abbreviations
STAT
Immediately (from Latin "statim")
NPO
Nothing by mouth (from Latin "nil per os")
QNS
Quantity Not Sufficient
IV
Intravenous
IM
Intramuscular
PPE
Personal Protective Equipment
OSHA
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
CLSI
Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute
EDTA
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (lavender top anticoagulant)
SST
Serum Separator Tube (gold top)
Anatomical Position and Directional Terms
Understanding anatomical terminology helps you communicate patient positioning and vein locations precisely.
Anterior (Ventral)
Front of the body
Posterior (Dorsal)
Back of the body
Superior (Cephalad)
Above, toward the head
Inferior (Caudal)
Below, toward the feet
Medial
Toward the midline of the body
Lateral
Away from the midline
Proximal
Closer to the point of attachment or trunk
Distal
Farther from the point of attachment
Superficial
Near the surface
Deep
Away from the surface
Bilateral
On both sides
Unilateral
On one side
Phlebotomy-Specific Terminology
Beyond general medical terminology, phlebotomists need to understand terms specific to blood collection, specimen processing, and laboratory procedures. These terms appear frequently on all certification exams.
Collection Terms
- Venipuncture: Puncture of a vein to collect blood. The most common method for routine blood collection. See our venipuncture technique guide.
- Capillary puncture (dermal puncture): Puncture of skin capillaries (fingertip or heel) for small-volume specimens. See our capillary collection guide.
- Antecubital fossa: The inner bend of the elbow — the preferred venipuncture site containing the median cubital, cephalic, and basilic veins.
- Hemoconcentration: Increased concentration of blood components (cells, large molecules) caused by prolonged tourniquet application (over 1 minute). This is a preanalytical error.
- Hematoma: Accumulation of blood under the skin at the puncture site, usually caused by the needle going through the vein or inadequate post-draw pressure.
- Petechiae: Tiny red or purple spots on the skin from broken capillaries, sometimes seen in patients with low platelet counts (thrombocytopenia).
Specimen Processing Terms
- Hemolysis: Rupture of red blood cells, releasing hemoglobin into the serum/plasma. Causes falsely elevated potassium and LDH results. The most common reason for specimen rejection.
- Lipemic: Milky/cloudy appearance of serum due to high fat content. Often seen in non-fasting specimens and can interfere with certain test results.
- Icteric: Yellow discoloration of serum caused by elevated bilirubin (jaundice). Can interfere with spectrophotometric analysis.
- Aliquot: A portion of a specimen transferred to a separate container for testing or storage.
Medical Terminology on Certification Exams
Medical terminology appears throughout certification exams, not just in dedicated terminology questions. You must be able to interpret test orders, understand patient conditions, and communicate using proper medical language.
How Terminology is Tested
- Recognizing abbreviations on test requisitions (CBC, CMP, PT/INR)
- Understanding patient conditions that affect phlebotomy (thrombocytopenia, leukemia, mastectomy)
- Interpreting anatomical directions for vein selection
- Recognizing root words, prefixes, and suffixes to determine word meaning
- Understanding documentation and communication terminology
Study Tip
Make flashcards for prefixes, suffixes, and root words. Once you master these word parts, you can figure out unfamiliar terms by breaking them down into components. This is more effective than memorizing hundreds of complete terms individually.
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Clinical References
- CLSI H3-A6 — Procedures for the Collection of Diagnostic Blood Specimens by Venipuncture
- CLSI GP41 — Collection of Diagnostic Venous Blood Specimens
- NHA CPT Exam Content Outline (2024)
- ASCP Board of Certification Content Guidelines
- OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard (29 CFR 1910.1030)
- CDC Guidelines for Infection Control in Healthcare Settings
Related Study Topics
What you covered
Root words, prefixes, suffixes, and abbreviations used in phlebotomy practice.
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