Video: Common anatomy abbreviations

Hello again everyone! It’s Matt from Kenhub, and today, we will discuss the most common abbreviations in anatomy.

There are so many words used to name and describe anatomy. It's not enough that these words themselves are sometimes foreign, but we also need descriptor on top of descriptor to specify exactly what is being talked about. In order to simplify this in writing, there are some standard abbreviations that anatomists use. This video will review them and hopefully make your note taking easier.

We will start by discussing the abbreviations for anatomical structures and then go over the ones for features. There are two things you should know upfront. These are abbreviations for the Latin terms and the plural form is just a repeated consonant. For example, the abbreviation for muscle is m., and for muscles is mm. So, we have begun.

For artery, the abbreviation is a., and for arteries, it is aa; v. is short for vein and vv for veins. For cartilage, it's cartil. It may not seem like much of an abbreviation but trust me, every little bit helps when you are writing from memory. Gl. is short for gland and for glands, gll. Same goes for ligament – lig. is singular and ligg. is plural.

The abbreviation for nerve is n., and for an aggregation of nerve cells or nucleus, its nucl. For plexus, which is a weave of nerves and vessels together, the abbreviation is pl. For bronchus, the abbreviation is br.

When discussing whether a structure is right or left in anatomy, we use the terms dexter for right or sinister for left. The abbreviations are dex. and sin., respectively. Post. is the abbreviation for posterior used for structures found towards your back, and as you can probably guess, the abbreviation for anterior is ant. for structures you can then find towards the front of your body.

Here's a list of other commonly used abbreviations regarding anatomical features: ang. for angle, apert. for opening or aperture, b. stands for bursa which is a fluid filled sac lined by synovial membrane. Decus. is the abbreviation for crossing or decussation, and membr. is short for membrane, and fasc. is the abbreviation for fascicle. A fascicle is a bundle of muscle fibers surrounded by a perimysium. Proc. is short for process – if you remember, a process is a projection from a structure - and rec. for recess, which is a depression or cleft.

The Latin term for branch and branches is ramus and rami so the abbreviations are r. and rr. Those terms and abbreviations are commonly used when we're referring to all the branches coming out of the main arteries. Yes, arteries do resemble trees with the main trunk and all the branches coming out of it.

Finally, for suture, the abbreviation is sut. Don't mix up the term suture used in anatomy with surgical sutures. A suture in anatomy refers to a relatively rigid joint found usually between bones.