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Health Slang

The healthcare industry is full of slang terms. Some acronyms and abbreviations are specialized medical terms, while others are used in everyday discussions about nutrition and fitness. Even if you're not a doctor or a nurse, many of the terms below are good to know.

Slang Term	Meaning	Votes
Anti-vaxxer	A person who opposes vaccines	577
STD	Sexually transmitted disease	583
Rx	Prescription	586
CPR	Cardiopulmonary resuscitation	590
ADD	Attention deficit disorder	592
ICU	Intensive care unit	592
RN	Registered nurse	592
AIDS	Acquired immune deficiency syndrome	593
DM	Doctor of Medicine	593
OTC	Over-the-counter	594
HIV	Human immunodeficiency virus	594
Snapback culture	Pressure on new moms to snap back to their pre-pregnancy bodies	594
PTSD	Post-traumatic stress disorder	595
ADHD	Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder	595
ACL	Anterior cruciate ligament	595
MD	Medical doctor	595
EMT	Emergency medical technician	595
POS	Point of service	595
PPE	Personal Protective Equipment	595
ED	Eating disorder	595
OI	Opportunistic infection	596
AMA	American Medical Association	596
CHF	Congestive heart failure	596
CAFO	Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation	596
Non-GMO	Unvaccinated	596
HWP	Height weight proportionate	597
PFO	Pissed and fell over	597
meds	Medications	597
ER	Emergency room	597
CDC	Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	597
OBGYN	Obstetrics and gynecology	597
IVF	In Vitro Fertilization	597
FDA	Food and Drug Administration	597
BM	Bowel movement	597
h	Hour	597
Perc30	Oxycodone, commonly mixed with fentanyl	597
Thumb day	When you browse your phone incessantly at the gym	597
BDD	Body dysmorphic disorder	597
AMA	Against medical advice	597
F2M	Female to male	597
ppd	Postpartum depression	598
SOB	Shortness of breath	598
CAD	Coronary artery disease	598
SIDS	Sudden infant death syndrome	598
STI	Sexually transmitted infection	598
iv	Intravenous	598
OBG	Obstetrics and gynecology	598
ENT	Ear, nose, and throat specialist	598
BLS	Basic life support	598
ALS	Advanced life support	598
EMS	Emergency medical services	598
EHR	Electronic health record	598
EOB	Explanation of benefits	598
AAA	Apply to affected area	598
BID	Twice a day	598
Long-hauler	A person suffering long-term effects from COVID-19	598
Fauci Ouchie	COVID-19 vaccine	598
vax	Vaccination	598
Anti-vax	Against vaccines	598
Delta	COVID-19 Delta variant	598
Omicron	COVID-19 Omicron variant	598
Long COVID	Long-term COVID-19 symptoms	598
FTM	Female to male	598
M2F	Male to female	598
ACV	Apple cider vinegar	598
NoPoo	No shampoo	598
CGM	Curly girl method	598
Co Washing	Conditioner-only washing	598
Pro-ana	Pro anorexia	598
mia	Bulimia	598
Thinspiration	Inspiration to be thin	598
AML	Acute myeloid leukemia	598
DOC	Drug of choice	599
OOP	Out of pocket	599
PED	Performance enhancing drug	599
HGH	Human growth hormone	599
WHO	World Health Organization	599
VD	Venereal disease	599
HDL	High-density lipoprotein	599
LCL	Lateral collateral ligament	599
DO	Doctor of Osteopathy	599
PT	Physical therapy	599
DNR	Do not resuscitate	599
CNA	Certified nursing assistant	599
COPD	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease	599
ARF	Acute renal failure	599
tb	Tuberculosis	599
TBI	Traumatic brain injury	599
Q	Every	599
Fitspiration	Inpiration to be fit	599
GOMER	Get Out of My Emergency Room	599
Chub rub	Chafing where your thighs rub together	599
Fire thighs	Thighs inflamed from chafing	599
ROM	Range of motion	599
Flurona	Having both the flu and covid	599
Twindemic	A dual pandemic	599
Never Covid	A person exposed to but uninfected by COVID-19	599
GSM	Gender and sexuality minority	599
SOGI	Sexual orientation and gender identity	599
Leg day	Workout day specializing on legs	599
BPD	Borderline personality disorder	599
LW	Lowest weight	599
HW	Highest weight	599
SW	Starting weight	599
xt	Cross-training	600
EPO	Erythropoietin	600
PPO	Preferred provider organization	600
HMO	Health maintenance organization	600
PCP	Primary care physician	600
LDL	Low-density lipoprotein	600
ACLS	Advanced cardiac life support	600
AED	Automated external defibrillator	600
DNI	Do not intubate	600
USFDA	United States Food and Drug Administration	600
ALOS	Average length of stay	600
AMI	Acute myocardial infarction	600
ARI	Acute respiratory infection	600
CICU	Cardiac intensive care unit	600
TCU	Transitional care unit	600
STEL	Short term exposure limit	600
FPL	Federal poverty level	600
IF	Intermittent fasting	600
MTF	Male to female	600
AFAB	Assigned female at birth	600
AMAB	Assigned male at birth	600
ana	Anorexia	600
H&W	Height and weight	600
ITU	Intensive treatment unit	601
CCU	Critical care unit	601
ED	Emergency department	601
ICN	Intensive Care Nursery	601
AND	Allow natural death	601
APS	Adult protective services	601
COI	Certificate of insurance	601
PO	By mouth	601
DSAB	Designated sex at birth	601
AE	Accident and emergency	602
NICU	Neonatal Intensive Care Unit	602
ST	Speech therapy	602
SSI	Surgical site infection	602
Gains	Increased healthiness	602
CVI	Cerebrovascular insult	603
EMR	Electronic medical record	603
MCL	Medial collateral ligament	600
BP	Blood pressure	600
PCL	Posterior cruciate ligament	600
HHA	Home health aide	600
ALP	Assisted living program	600
CDT	Continuing day treatment	600
CRNA	Certified registered nurse anesthetist	600
CVA	Cerebrovascular accident	600
HCAI	Health care associated infection	600
ACO	Accountable care organization	600
EOC	Evidence of coverage	600
HS	At bedtime	600
CTE	Chronic traumatic encephalopathy	600
SAAB	Sex assigned at birth	600
Arm day	Workout day specializing on arms	600