List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms

List of common medical abbreviations and acronyms for nursing, CNAs, doctors, students, pharmacy, and all healthcare professionals!


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Medical Abbreviations

Medical abbreviations and acronyms are frequently used in the healthcare field.

It is important to understand them in order to optimize charting, communication, and patient care.

Abbreviations are commonly used for pharmacy prescriptions (frequency of drug administration such as once a day, twice a day, as needed, etc), blood work, labs, tests, imaging, anatomy (left eye, right eye, abdominal quadrants, etc) and much more.

This lecture will provide you with a list of common medical abbreviations and terms for the following categories:

  • Charting

  • Vital Signs

  • Labs

  • Imaging

  • Pharmacy

  • Medications

  • Diagnosis/Conditions

  • Anatomy

  • Treatment/Care

Let’s get started!

Enjoy all of the EZmed medical terminology lectures below!

Medical Abbreviations MADE EASY! - Currently Viewing

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Medical Root Words MADE EASY! - Part I

Medical Root Words MADE EASY! - Part II

Medical Root Words MADE EASY! - Part III

Medical Suffixes MADE EASY!

List of medical abbreviation and acronym categories that will be discussed below.


Charting Abbreviations

Let’s begin with common abbreviations you might see associated with charting. 

AMA = Against Medical Advice

DC = Discharge or Discontinue

DNR = Do Not Resuscitate

H&P = History & Physical 

HPI = History of Present Illness

H/O = History Of 

NKDA = No Known Drug Allergies

PCP = Primary Care Physician

A&O = Alert and Oriented

WNL = Within Normal Limits

RF = Risk Factors

Sx = Symptoms

Dx = Diagnosis

Tx = Treatment

NAD = No Acute Distress

UOP = Urine Output

I&O = Intake and Output

C/O = Complaint Of

CC = Chief Complaint

ROS = Review of Systems 

DDx = Differential Diagnosis

MDM = Medical Decision Making

IBW = Ideal Body Weight

DOB = Date of Birth

ICU = Intensive Care Unit

MVA = Motor Vehicle Accident

GSW = Gunshot Wound

Fx = Fracture

EBL = Estimated Blood Loss

BM = Bowel Movement

CP = Chest Pain

SOB = Shortness of Breath

DOE = Dyspnea on Exertion 

STAT = Immediately

CV = Cardiovascular 

GI = Gastrointestinal 

ID = Infectious Disease

S/P = Status Post

FB = Foreign Body

ALS or BLS = Advanced or Basic Life Support

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Charting

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Charting


Vital Sign Abbreviations

Next we have abbreviations for vital signs, which will likely appear in charts as well.  

VS = Vital Signs

VSS = Vital Signs Stable

BP = Blood Pressure

HR = Heart Rate

P = Pulse

RR = Respiratory Rate

T = Temperature 

SpO2 or SaO2 = Oxygen Saturation

Ht/Wt = Height and Weight

BMI = Body Mass Index

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Vital Signs


Lab Abbreviations

The following are common lab abbreviations. 

CBC = Complete Blood Count

WBC = White Blood Cells

RBC = Red Blood Cells

Plt = Platelets 

BMP = Basic Metabolic Panel

CMP = Comprehensive Metabolic Panel

LFT = Liver Function Test

H&H = Hemoglobin & Hematocrit

Hb or HGB = Hemoglobin

HCT = Hematocrit

Na = Sodium

K = Potassium

Ca = Calcium

UA = Urinalysis 

ABG = Arterial Blood Gas

PT = Prothrombin Time

PTT = Partial Thromboplastin Time

INR = International Normalized Ratio

T&S = Type & Screen

T&C = Type & Cross

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Labs


Imaging/Test Abbreviations

In addition to the labs above, there may also be imaging or other tests ordered for the patient. 

Some of these abbreviations include:

CXR = Chest X-Ray

ABX = Abdominal X-Ray

US = Ultrasound

MRI = Magnetic Resonance Imaging

CT = Computed Tomography

EKG or ECG = Electrocardiogram 

EEG = Electroencephalogram

KUB = Kidney, Ureter, and Bladder X-Ray

PFT = Pulmonary Function Test 

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Imaging/Tests


Pharmacy Abbreviations

Let’s move on to abbreviations you might see associated with pharmacy. 

Many of these are used for the frequency in which a medication is administered. 

AC = Before Meals

PC = After Meals 

The way you can remember AC vs PC is “A” comes before “P” in the alphabet. 

So A means before meals, and P means after meals. 

QD = Once Daily

BID = Twice Daily

TID = Three Times Daily

QID = Four Times Daily

QHS = Every Night at Bedtime

QAM = Every Morning

QPM = Every Evening

QOD = Every Other Day

QH = Once Every Hour

Q2H = Every 2 Hours

Q3H = Every 3 Hours

PRN = As Needed 

PO = By Mouth

NPO = Nothing By Mouth

SC or SQ = Subcutaneous 

IM = Intramuscular 

IV = Intravenous 

OTC = Over The Counter

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Pharmacy


Medication Abbreviations

Next we have abbreviations for different medications and drug names. 

BB = Beta Blocker

CCB = Calcium Channel Blocker

ARB = Angiotensin II Receptor Blocker

ACEi = ACE Inhibitor 

NTG = Nitroglycerin

ASA = Aspirin

ABX = Antibiotics

PCN = Penicillin

TPA = Tissue Plasminogen Activator 

APAP = Acetaminophen

NS = Normal Saline

D5W = Dextrose 5% in Water

LR = Lactated Ringer’s 

ETOH = Alcohol 

HCTZ = Hydrochlorothiazide

MTX = Methotrexate 

OCP = Oral Contraceptive Pill

TMP/SMX = Trimethoprim Sulfamethoxazole

MOM = Milk of Magnesia 

PPI = Proton Pump Inhibitor 

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Medications and Drug Names


Diagnosis/Condition Abbreviations

The following are abbreviations for different diagnoses or conditions.

CAD = Coronary Artery Disease

HTN = Hypertension

DM = Diabetes Mellitus 

CHF = Congestive Heart Failure 

COPD = Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease 

MI = Myocardial Infarction

PE = Pulmonary Embolism 

PNA = Pneumonia 

TIA = Transient Ischemic Attack

CVA = Cerebrovascular Accident 

ARDS = Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

CKD = Chronic Kidney Disease

AKI = Acute Kidney Injury

ARF = Acute Renal Failure 

ESRD = End Stage Renal Disease

CF = Cystic Fibrosis 

CP = Cerebral Palsy 

IBD = Inflammatory Bowel Disease 

IBS = Irritable Bowel Syndrome

UC = Ulcerative Colitis 

PUD = Peptic Ulcer Disease 

GERD = Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

ICP = Intracranial Pressure 

TBI = Traumatic Brain Injury 

TGA = Transient Global Amnesia

UTI = Urinary Tract Infection 

URI = Upper Respiratory Infection 

RAD = Reactive Airway Disease 

SBO = Small Bowel Obstruction 

DVT = Deep Venous Thrombosis 

RSV = Respiratory Syncytial Virus 

VF = Ventricular Fibrillation 

VT = Ventricular Tachycardia 

Afib or AF = Atrial Fibrillation 

PVC = Premature Ventricular Contraction 

MS = Multiple Sclerosis 

PD = Parkinson’s Disease 

BPH = Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia 

RA = Rheumatoid Arthritis 

OSA = Obstructive Sleep Apnea

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Diagnoses and Conditions

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Diagnoses and Conditions


Anatomy Abbreviations

The following are abbreviations associated with anatomy. 

The abdomen can be divided into different quadrants, especially when referring to the location of abdominal pain or site of injury. 

RUQ = Right Upper Quadrant 

LUQ = Left Upper Quadrant 

RLQ = Right Lower Quadrant 

LLQ = Left Lower Quadrant 

There are 4 chambers of the heart.

RA = Right Atrium

LA = Left Atrium 

RV = Right Ventricle 

LV = Left Ventricle 

The 4 extremities can also be abbreviated as follows:

RUE = Right Upper Extremity 

LUE = Left Upper Extremity 

RLE = Right Lower Extremity 

LLE = Left Lower Extremity 

The abdomen can be abbreviated as follows:

ABD = Abdomen

The lungs can be divided into different fields.  

LUL = Left Upper Lobe

LLL = Left Lower Lobe

RUL = Right Upper Lobe

RML = Right Middle Lobe

RLL = Right Lower Lobe

Miscellaneous Anatomical Abbreviations:

CBD = Common Bile Duct 

OD = Right Eye

OS = Left Eye

OU = Both Eyes

HC = Head Circumference 

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Anatomy


Treatment/Care Abbreviations

Let’s wrap this up with abbreviations you might see associated with treatment or care. 

Bx = Biopsy

ECMO = Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation 

FNA = Fine Needle Aspiration 

I&D = Incision & Drainage 

PT = Physical Therapy

OT = Occupational Therapy 

PEEP = Positive End Expiratory Pressure

CPAP = Continuous Positive Airway Pressure

BiPAP = Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure

CABG = Coronary Artery Bypass Graft 

IVIG = Intravenous Immunoglobulin 

ORIF = Open Reduction Internal Fixation 

NGT = Nasogastric Tube 

Pre-Op = Preoperative 

Post-Op = Postoperative 

POC = Point of Care 

AKA = Above the Knee Amputation 

BKA = Below the Knee Amputation 

PPE = Personal Protective Equipment 

IUP = Intrauterine Pregnancy

List of Common Medical Abbreviations and Acronyms for Treatment and Care


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