Medical professionals are in constant contact with patients from all walks of life. You may not always have an interpreter or loved one to help translate, and it will be good to have a strong medical vocabulary available to you. So feel free to download this page as a PDF for reference.
It is essential to know as many of the top Spanish medical terms for nurses, doctors, & emergency/first responders in communities with Spanish speakers. Use these 149 terms commonly used terms in healthcare in order to understand the language and communicate better with patients in case of a medical emergency or routine attention.
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Let’s review some top Spanish words for medical purposes:
Medical terminology for:
1) Common Disease/Medical Symptoms in Spanish:
The following chart shows some Spanish words related to common symptoms expressed by patients in general:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| abscess | absceso |
| burns | quemaduras |
| constipation | estreñimiento |
| cough | tos |
| dehydration | deshidratación |
| depression | depresión |
| diarrhea | diarrea |
| dizziness | mareo |
| fatigue | fatiga |
| fever | fiebre |
| fracture | fractura |
| headache | dolor de cabeza |
| hemorrhage | hemorragia |
| high tension | tensión alta |
| hypoglycemia | hipoglucemia |
| hyperglycemia | hiperglucemia |
| itching | picazón |
| lower back pain | dolor lumbar |
| poisoning | envenenamiento |
| pain/hurts | dolor / duele |
| rash | sarpullido / erupción |
| sore throat | dolor de garganta |
| stomachache | dolor de estómago |
| vision problems | problemas de visión |
| vomit | vómito |
2) Common Etiologies in Spanish:
The next chart lists some words related to words representing common disease external and internal causes (etiologies):
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| arthritis | artritis |
| bacterial infection | infección bacteriana |
| cancer | cáncer |
| diabetes | diabetes |
| diet | dieta |
| high pressure | hipertensión arterial |
| infection | infección |
| low pressure | hipotensión arterial |
| microbe | microbio |
| osteoarthritis | osteoartritis |
| pneumonia | neumonía |
| viral infection | infección viral |
| smoking | fumar |
| virus | virus |
3) Common Sequels in Spanish:
Chart number 3 names some Spanish vocabulary words related to common disease sequels:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| appetite loss | pérdida de apetito |
| arrhythmia | arritmia |
| breathing difficulty / shortness of breath | dificultad respiratoria |
| debilitation / weakness | debilitamiento / debilidad |
| embolism | embolia |
| inflammation / swelling | inflamación |
| irritation | irritación |
| memory loss | pérdida de memoria |
| myocarditis | miocarditis |
| paralysis | parálisis |
| sepsis | sepsis / septicemia |
| thrombosis | trombosis |
| weight loss | pérdida de peso |
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4) Common Therapies in Spanish:
Chart number 4 shows vocabulary words that represent different types of therapies in Spanish:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| therapy | terapia |
| physical therapy / physiotherapy | terapia física / fisioterapia |
| cognitive therapy | terapia cognitiva |
| Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) | terapia cognitivo conductual (TCC) |
| curative therapy | terapia curativa |
| Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) | terapia dialéctica conductual (TDC/DBT) |
| drug therapy / pharmacotherapy | farmacoterapia |
| neurological therapy | terapia neurológica |
| orthopedic therapy | terapia ortopédica |
| occupational therapy | Terapia ocupacional |
| respiratory therapy | terapia respiratoria |
| systemic therapy | terapia sistémica |
5) Common Accidents and Injuries in Spanish:
Next, let’s review some vocabulary words describing names of common accidents and injuries in Spanish:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| to bang your head | golpearse la cabeza |
| to bleed / bleeding | sangrar / hemorragia |
| to break a bone | romperse un hueso |
| bruise | moretón |
| car accident | accidente de auto |
| to cut / cut | cortarse / corte |
| to faint / faint | desmayarse / desmayo |
| to fall / fall | caerse / caída |
| electrocution | descarga eléctrica |
| to get hurt | lastimarse |
| injury | lesión |
| sprain | torcedura |
| sting | picadura |
| to twist | torcerse |
| wound | herida |
6) Body Parts in Spanish:
The next chart lists a number of vocabulary words that represent parts of the body in Spanish:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| ankle | tobillo |
| appendix | apéndice |
| arm | brazo |
| back | espalda |
| brain | cerebro |
| chest | pecho |
| colon | colon |
| ears | oídos / orejas |
| eye | ojo |
| finger | dedo (de la mano) |
| foot | pie |
| forearm | antebrazo |
| gallbladder | vesícula biliar |
| gluteus | gluteo |
| hand | mano |
| head | cabeza |
| heart | corazón |
| hip | cadera |
| kidney | riñón |
| large intestine | intestino grueso |
| leg | pierna |
| liver | hígado |
| lungs | pulmones |
| mouth | boca |
| muscle | músculo |
| neck | cuello |
| nose | nariz |
| pancreas | páncreas |
| shoulder | hombro |
| small intestine | intestino delgado |
| stomach | estómago |
| toe | dedo (del pie) |
| urinary bladder | vejiga |
| wrist | muñeca |
7) Frequent Emergencies in Spanish:
The following chart contains the names of frequent medical emergencies in Spanish.
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| accident | accidente |
| food poisoning | intoxicación alimentaria |
| bleeding | sangrado |
| heart attack | ataque al corazón /infarto de miocardio |
| seizure | convulsión |
| stroke | accidente cerebral |
| emergency room | sala de emergencias |
8) Common & Specialty Medicines in Spanish:
Chart number 8 lists some vocabulary words related to the names of common and specific medicines in Spanish:
| ENGLISH TERMS | SPANISH TERMS |
|---|---|
| insulin | insulina |
| metformin | metformina |
| ibuprofen | ibuprofeno |
| aspirin | aspirina |
| simvastatin | simvastatina |
| omeprazole | omeprazol |
| sodium levothyroxine | levotiroxina sódica |
| ramipril | ramipril |
| amlodipine | amlodipino |
| losartan | losartan |
| enalapril | enalapril |
| captopril | captopril |
| paracetamol | paracetamol |
| acetaminofen | acetaminofen |
| salbutamol | salbutamol |
| lansoprazole | lansoprazol |
| sodium chloride | cloruro de sodio |
| colecalciferol | colecalciferol |
| bisoprolol fumarate | bisoprolol fumarato |
| co-codamol | co-codamol |
| bendroflumethiazide | bendroflumetiazida |
| amoxicillin | amoxicilina |
| azithromycin | azitromicina |
| amitriptyline hydrochloride | hidrocloruro de amitriptilina |
| warfarin sodium | warfarina sódica |
| metamizole | metamizol |
| codeine | codeína |
| penicillin | penicilina |
Learning these words will help you improve your performance in the Spanish language. Try to study more and more words every day, and soon you will feel confident in communicating with Spanish-speaking patients. So, keep on learning new vocabulary related to health, illness, and medicine in general in Spanish to continue improving your communicative skills. If you have any ideas or suggestions on the subject of what you would like to learn, leave your comments in this post.
About the Author:
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Bio: My name is Jenny López, I'm from Colombia, and I'm a doctor. I look forward to helping other doctors and nurses with medical Spanish.
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Other articles: Spanish Vocabulary for the Emergency Room
Disclaimer: The information found on this website is meant only to aid healthcare professionals who want to improve their Spanish skills to communicate with their Spanish-speaking patients and not to be used as medical advice. Medical professionals should not rely on the content of this website to evaluate, diagnose or treat any health related condition.