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ABG - Arterial blood gas ABX - Antibiotics a.c. - Before meals ADH - Antidiuretic hormone aeb - As evidenced by AKI - Acute kidney injury AMA
- Against medical advice b.i.d. - Twice a day BM - Bowel movement BP - Blood pressure BPM - Beats per minute BUN
- Blood urea nitrogen c ("c" with a bar over it) - With CABG - Coronary artery bypass graft CAD - Coronary artery disease CBC - Complete blood count CHF - Congestive heart failure CKD - Chronic kidney disease CNS - Central nervous system c/o - Complains of CO - Cardiac output COPD - Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder CPK - Creatine phosphokinase CSF - Cerebrospinal fluid CVA - Cerebrovascular accident (stroke) CVP - Central venous pressure d/c - Discontinue/discharge DM - Diabetes mellitus Dx - Diagnosis EC - Enteric coated ECG/EKG- Electrocardiogram EEG- Electroencephalogram GFR - Glomerular filtration rate
Hgb- Hemoglobin HR- Heart rate h.s. - Before bed HTN - Hypertension Hx- History ICP- Intracranial pressure IM- Intramuscular IV- Intravenous IVPB- Intravenous piggyback LLQ - Left lower quadrant LMP - Last menstrual period LOC- Level of consciousness LR - Lactated ringers LUQ - Left upper quadrant MI- Myocardial infarction (heart attack) NC- Nasal cannula NG - Nasogastric NKA or NKDA- "No known allergies" or "no known drug allergies" NPO- Nothing by mouth NS - Normal saline N/V- Nausea/vomiting OTC- Over the counter PO- By mouth POC - Plan of care PRN - As needed or when necessary PT - Prothrombin time or physical therapy PTT - Partial thromboplastin time Q- Every RBC - Red blood cell RLQ - Right lower quadrant R/O - Rule out ROM - Range of motion R/T
"Do Not Use" List Of Abbreviations
The Joint Commission® has put together a list of medical abbreviations that should not be used. These abbreviations are likely to be mixed up with other abbreviations and cause confusion between patient care providers.
Do not use: U or u Rationale: It can be confused with "0," "4," or "cc" What to use instead: Write out "unit" instead
Do not use: IU Rationale: It can be confused with "IV" or "10" What to use instead: Write out "International Unit" instead
Do not use: Q.D., QD, q.d., qd Rationale: They can be confused with each other or with "00" or "I" What to use instead: Write out "daily" instead
Do not use: Q.O.D., QOD, q.o.d., qod Rationale: They can be confused with each other or with "00" or "I" What to use instead: Write out "every other day" instead
Do not use: MS Rationale: It can mean either magnesium sulfate or morphine sulfate What to use instead: Write out "magnesium sulfate" or "morphine sulfate"
Do not use: MSO4, MgSO Rationale: They can be confused with each other What to use instead: Write out "magnesium sulfate"
Do not use: Training zeros when writing numbers with decimals Rationale: They can be confused with adding zeros to a number (ex. "1.0" vs "10") What to use instead: Do not include a trailing zero (ex. write "1" instead of "1.0")
Do not use: Leading zero is missing when writing numbers with decimals Rationale: They can be confused with a different number (ex. ".2" vs "2") What to use instead: Always use a leading zero (ex. write "0.2" instead of ".2")
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: This cheat sheet is intended for informational purposes only. This is not medical advice and errors may occur. Never treat a patient or make a nursing or medical decision based on the information provided on this study guide. Never practice nursing or medicine unless you have a proper license to do so.
