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Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.IntractableHow to say it:Intractable(in-track-ta-bull)What it means: Not easy to fix, cure, or relieve.Where it comes from: From Latin,intractabilis, “unmanagable"Tima Miroshnichenko/PexelsWhere you might see or hear it: If you have pain that does not get better when you take medicine or with other treatments, your doctor might refer to it as being “intractable” because the word means “not easy to relieve....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.Word of the Week: IntravenousHow to say it:Intravenous(in-tra-vee-nuss)What it means: In a vein.Where it comes from: FromLatin, “intra” = inside and “venous” = vein.DataBase Center for Life Science (DBCLS)/Wikimedia CommonsWhere you might see or hear it: If you are in the hospital andneed medicine, you might get an “IV” put in your arm. “IV” stands for “intravenous. It means that the medicine is being given to you through a vein rather than in your mouth (like it would be if you took a pill)....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.Word of the Week: MetastaticHow to say it: Metastatic (met-ah-STAH-tick)What it means: When the cause of a disease (such ascancer cells) moves from the place where it first started to other places in the body.Where it comes from: From the Latinmethistanhi, meaning “to change.“Yale Rosen/Wikimedia CommonsWhere you might see or hear it: If you or a loved one is diagnosed with cancer in one organ and it spreads to another, your doctor will use the term"metastatic” to describe cancer....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology. Morbidity How to say it:Morbidity(mor-BID-it-tea) What it means: How many people have a certain disease in a population. Where it comes from: Latin,morbus, “disease” Clay Banks/Unsplash Where you might see or hear it: When you hear about a disease outbreak in the news, one piece ofinformation that scientists keep an eyeon is how many people in a population get sick....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology. How to say it:Non-invasive(non-in-VAY-siv) What it means: Not going inside or not spreading. Where it comes from: From Latin,non =not andinvādere, “to go into.” cottonbro/Pexels Where you might see or hear it: If you have to have a test, your provider might tell you that it is non-invasive. This means that you do not need to have anything put inside your body....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.ObservationHow to say it:Observation(ob-sur-VAY-shun)What it means:Keeping an eye on a patientto see if they get better or worse before starting or changing treatment.Where it comes from: Latin,observare, “to watch”TwilightShow / Getty ImagesWhere you might see or hear it: If you are sick enough to need medical care but your provider is not sure that you should be admitted to the hospital as an inpatient, they might put you in“observation” status....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.Word of the Week: PallorHow to say it: Pallor (pal-LORE)What it means: Paleness; a sickly look in the face.Where it comes from: In Latinpallor, meaning “loss of color.“Zinkevych/GettyWhere you might see or hear it: When you are sick, someone might tell you that you look pale or do not have your normal rosy color on your face. When you look at the symptoms of some conditions, you might see the word “pallor” which describes the sickly paleness that you may have....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology. Palpation How to say it:Palpation(pal-PAY-shun) Where it comes from:Latin,palpare, “to stroke or caress” BSIP / Getty Images Where you might see or hear it: When your provider does an exam, they may need to feel different parts of your body. Topalpatea part of your body means to touch and feel it. If an area of your body does not feel normal when your provider is palpating it, there might be a problem....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology. Placebo How to say it:Placebo(plah-SEE-bow) What it means: A treatment or substance with no real medicine in it. Where it comes from: From Latin,placebo,“I shall please” Wengang Zhai/Unsplash One example is testing a medication. The researchers can put people in the study into two groups. Both groups are told that they are getting medication. One group gets the real medication and the other group gets a pill that looks exactly like the real medication but it’s actually just made of sugar and has no real medicine in it....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.ProdromeHow to say it: Prodrome (pro-dro-m)What it means: An early sign or symptom of a disease.Where it comes from: From Greek “pro” meaning before and “dromos” meaning the act of running.MaximFesenko/GettyWhere you might see or hear it: Everything from serious medical events likeheart attackstosimple coldscan have signs or symptoms leading up to them. If you get sick, your doctor might ask you how you were feeling in the hours or days before you became unwell....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.PrognosisHow to say it: Prognosis (prog-no-sis).What it means: The expected way that a condition or disease will unfold.Where it comes from: From the Greek “pro” meaning “before” and “gnosis” meaning “to know.“The Good Brigade/GettyWhere you might see or hear it: When you are given a diagnosis, your doctor might use the term prognosis when discussing what your life will look like from now on....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology.Word of the Week: ProphylaxisHow to say it:Prophylaxis(pro-fee-LAX-sis)What it means: A preventive treatmentWhere it comes from: From Greek,prophylak,“to guard"Anna Shvets/PexelsWhere you might see or hear it: Antibiotics are sometimes given before surgeries or procedures to help prevent infection. These are called prophylactic antibiotics. Dentists mayprescribe antibioticsbefore oral surgery.When you might want to use it: If you are at risk for HIV, you might be familiar withPre-Exposure Prophylaxis(PReP)....

Each week, Verywell explains a term from health, medicine, science, or technology. Pruritus How to say it:Pruritus(proo-RIGHT-us) What it means: Feeling itchy. Where it comes from: Latin,prurio, “to itch” Oscar Wong / Getty Images Where you might see or hear it: If you go to your provider with an irritating rash, they’ll probably ask you if ititches. If you say yes, they would note “pruritus” as a symptom in your medical record....