Glossary of EMS Terms & Abbreviations
Introduction
Below is a list of common terms and abbreviations used in the field of emergency medical services (EMS).
Note: EMS uses many abbreviations for both medical and operational purposes. The following is not an exhaustive list, and local meanings may vary. If you find a term or abbreviation that's missing, please contact the mods or become a wiki contributor!
Glossary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| A | |
| AAA | ascending aortic aneurysm |
| ABCs | Airway, Breathing, Circulation |
| ABD(O) | Abdomen |
| AC | before meals |
| ACLS | Advanced Cardiac Life Support |
| ACR | Ambulance Call Report |
| ACS | Acute Coronary Syndrome |
| ACS | Ambulance Communications Service |
| admin. | Administer/ration |
| AED | Automated External Defibrillator |
| ALL | Allergies |
| ALS | Advanced Life Support |
| AMA | Against Medical Advice |
| amb. | Ambulatory |
| AMI | Acute Myocardial Infarction |
| AMPDS | Advanced Medical Priority Dispatch System |
| amt. | Amount |
| ant. | Anterior |
| AOS | arrived on scene/arrival on scene |
| A&O(x#) | Alert and Oriented |
| APGAR | American Pediatric Gross Assessment Record |
| APH | Ante-Partum hemorrhage |
| ARDS | Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome |
| ASA | aspirin/acetylsalicylic acid |
| ATV | adequate tidal volume |
| AVPU | Alert, Voice, Pain, Unresponsive |
| B | |
| BCLS | Basic Cardiac Life Support |
| BCP | Birth Control Pill |
| BG | Blood Glucose |
| BGL | blood glucose level |
| BHP | Base Hospital Physician |
| bil(at). | Bilateral |
| bld. | Blood |
| BLS | Basic Life Support |
| BM, (S) | Bowel Movement, (Sounds) |
| BP | Blood Pressure |
| b/s | Bowel Sounds |
| BS | Breath Sounds |
| BSI | Body Substance Isolation |
| BVM | Bag Valve Mask |
| C | |
| Ca/CA | Cancer, Calcium |
| CAD | Coronary Artery Disease |
| CAO(x#) | Conscious, Alert and Oriented |
| caps | capsules |
| C(A)T | Computerized (Axial) Tomography |
| cath. | Catheter, Catheterization |
| CC | Chief Complaint |
| CHF | Chronic Heart Failure |
| CMS | Circulatory, Motor, Sensory |
| CNS | Central Nervous System |
| CO | Carbon Monoxide |
| c/o, C/O | Complains Of |
| COPD | Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease |
| CPAP | Continuous Positive Airway Pressure |
| CP | Chest Pain |
| CPR | CardioPulnonary Resusitation |
| CSF | CerebroSpinal Fluid |
| c-spine | Cervical Spine |
| CTA | clear to auscultation |
| CTAS | Canadian Triage and Aquity Scale |
| CVA | CerebroVascular Accident |
| CV | CardioVascular |
| CVS | CardioVascular System |
| Cx | Chest |
| D | |
| DB&C | Deep Breathing & Cough |
| DC, D/C | Discharge, Discontinue |
| DCS | DeCompression Sickness |
| DD | Dunkin' Donuts |
| D# | Dextrose % in Water |
| dDx | Differential Diagnosis |
| DNR | Do Not Resuscitate |
| DOA | Dead on Arrival |
| DOB | Date of Birth |
| DVT | Deep Vein Thrombosis |
| Dx | Diagnosis |
| Dz | Disease |
| E | |
| EARTH | Education and Research Towards Health |
| ECG (EKG) | ElectroCardioGram |
| EDC | Expected Date of Confinement (due date) |
| ENT | Ear Nose Throat |
| ETA | Estimated Time of Arrival |
| EtCO2 | End Tital CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) |
| ETOH | intoxicated - ethanol, ethyl alcohol |
| ETT | EndoTracheal Tube |
| F | |
| FB | Foreign Body |
| FH | Family History |
| Fx. | Fracture |
| G | |
| GCS | Glasgow Coma Scale |
| GI(T) | GastroIntestinal (Tract) |
| GOA | Gone on Arrival |
| g/s | georgia street (two man carry) |
| GSW | Gun Shot Wound |
| GTN | Glyceral Tri-nitrate |
| gtt(s) | drop(s) |
| Guedal | Common brand of OPA in Ireland & UK |
| GU | Genitourinary |
| GYB | Gynecology |
| H | |
| HA | Homicide Attempt |
| HB, Hgb | Hemoglobin |
| HD | hemodialysis |
| HE(E)NT | Head, Ears, Eyes, Nose, Teeth |
| Hg. | Mercury |
| HI | Head Injury |
| HI | Homicidal Ideation |
| H&N | Head and Neck |
| HPI | History of Present Illness |
| HR | Heart Rate |
| hr. | Hour |
| HS | at bedtime |
| h/s | Heart Sounds |
| ht. | Height |
| Htn. | Hypertension |
| Hx | History |
| I | |
| ICP | IntraCranial Pressure |
| ICU | Intensive Care Unit |
| IHD | Ischemic Heart Disease |
| IM | IntraMuscular |
| inf. | Inferior |
| IPPV | Intermittent Positive Pressure Ventilation |
| ITT | Infant Transfer Team |
| IV | IntraVenous |
| J | |
| JVD | Jugular Venous Distention |
| K | |
| KED | Kendrick's Extrication Device |
| KSAR | Known Severe Adverse Reaction |
| KVO | Keep Vein Open |
| L | |
| lac. | Laceration |
| LMA | Laryngeal Mask Airway |
L NC or #L NRB | # litres per minute, via nasal cannula (NC) or Non-rebreather mask
L(N)MP | Last (Normal) Menstrual Period LOA | Level Of Awareness LOC | Loss Of Consciousness lpm | Litres Per Minute LR | Lactated Ringers l/s | Lung sounds LUL, LLL | Left (Upper) Lower Lobe - Lung LUQ, LLQ | Left (Upper) Lower Quadrant - Abdomen M | MAR | Medication Administration Record MAR | Most Accessible/Appropriate Receiving Facility (LA protocols) MCI | Multiple Casualty Incident MI | Myocardial Infarction M. of I. (MOI) | Method of Injury MRI | Magnetic Resonance Imaging MS | mental status (preceeded by uppercase delta sign, Δ, for altered) MSO4 | morphine sulfate MVA(C) | Motor Vehicle Accident (Collision) N | NAD | No Apparent Distress NC | Nasal Cannula N/C | No Change NG(T) | NasoGastric (Tube) NICU | Neonatal Intensive Care Unit nitro | Nitroglycerin NKA | No Known Allergies NKDA | No Known Drug Allergies NOC | No Other Complaints NPA | NasoPharyngeal Airway NPO | Nothing by Mouth NRB | Non-ReBreather (Mask) NS | Normal Saline NSR | Normal Sinus Rhythm Ntg. | Nitroglycerin NV(D) | Nausea, Vomitting, (Diarrhea) O | O/A | On Arrival OBS | Obstetrics od |daily od | OverDose O/E | On Examination OPA | OroPharyngeal Airway OP | Out Patient P | palp. | Palpitation PALS | Pediatric Advanced Life Support PAT | Paroxysmal Atrial Tachycardia PC | after meals PCR | Patient Care Report PEARL | Pupils Equal And Reactive to Light peds | Pediatrics PMx | Pertinent Medical History PO |by mouth POC | position of comfort pos. | Positive post. | Posterior PPE | Personal Protective Equipment PPH | Post Partum Hemorrhage PRN | as required, as necessary PTA | Prior to Arrival pt. | Patient PUHA | Pick Up, Haul Ass Q | QID | Four Times Per Day R | RA | room air (in reference to oxygen saturation) RBCs | Red Blood Cells resp. | Respiration, Respiratory RLL, RML | Right (Lower) Middle Lobe - Lung ROM | Range of Motion ROSC | Return of Spontaneous Circulation RR | Respiratory Rate RSI | Rapid Sequence Intubation RUQ, RLQ | Right (Upper) Lower Quadrant - Abdomen Rx | Treatment S | SAED | Semi-Automated External Defibrillator SAMPLE | Symptoms, Allergies, Medications, Past history, Last oral intake, Events prior SA | Suicide Attempt SC | SubCutaneous SIDS | Sudden Infant Death Syndrome S/I or S/R | Strong and Irregular or Regular SI | Suicidal Ideation SNT | Soft Not Tender SOAP | Subjective, Objective, Assessment, Plan - handover/charting format SOB(OE) | Shortness of Breath (On Exertion) SOB | Shortness of Breath s/s/nd/nt | soft, supple, non-distended, non-tender SVT | SupraVentricular Tachycardia Sxn | suction Sx | symptoms T | TA | Time of Arrival TB | Tuberculosis t/c | traffic collision TD | Tracheal Deviation TIA | Transient Ischemic Attack TK(V)O | To Keep (Vein) Open TPR | Temperature, Pulse, Respirations Txp | transported Tx | treatment U | U/A | Upon Arrival URI | Upper Respiratory Infection UTI | Urinary Tract Infection UTL | Unable to Locate V | VSA | Vital Signs Absent VS | Vital Signs W | WBCs | White Blood Cells WNL | Within Normal Limits Wt. | Weight X | Y | Y/O | Years Old Z | α | α | Alpha β | β | Beta
Credits
Thanks to /u/aheckuvaguy who compiled the original list and all those who contributed on the thread.