Medical slang

Medical slang is the use of

Examples of pejorative language include bagged and tagged for a corpse, a reference to the intake process at a

Limitations on use

In many countries, facetious or insulting acronyms are now considered unethical and unacceptable, and patients can access their medical records. Medical facilities risk being sued by patients offended by the descriptions.^{[citation needed]} Another reason for the decline is that facetious acronyms could be confused with genuine medical terms and the wrong treatment administered.

In one of his annual reports (related by the BBC), medical slang collector

Although online medical slang dictionaries are primarily from English-speaking countries, non-English medical slang has been collected by Fox from elsewhere. Brazilian medical slang includes PIMBA ("Pé Inchado Mulambo Bêbado Atropelado" meaning "swollen-footed, drunk, run-over beggar"), Poliesculhambado (multi-messed-up patient) and Trambiclínica (a "fraudulent clinic" staffed cheaply by medical students).[1]^[2]

Annual round-up

There is an annual round-up of the usage of medical slang by British physician Dr. Adam Fox of St Mary's Hospital, London. Fox has spent five years charting more than 200 examples, regional and national terms and the general decline of medical slang.^[3] He believes that doctors have become more respectful of patients, which has contributed to the decline. While its use may be declining in the medical profession, several dictionaries of the slang have been compiled on the internet.^[4]

See also

• Acronyms in healthcare
• List of medical abbreviations

References