hypocalcemic
1
8.8
- adjective
- /ˌhaɪpoʊkəˈlɛmɪk/
- Specialized
- Patients who are hypocalcemic often experience symptoms such as muscle cramps and tingling in their fingers.
Examples
-
During the examination, the patient was found to be hypocalcemic, prompting the need for immediate calcium supplementation.
-
When a nurse notes "muscle spasms" in a patient who has just had a thyroidectomy and she does not recognize that she is observing hypocalcemic tetany, the teaching begins with this fact.
Academic text (2005) -
Calcium supplementation in symptomatically hypocalcemic patients consisted of 10 cc of intravenous 10% calcium gluconate solution infused over 30 minutes.
Academic text (1996) -
The doctor explained that he was hypocalcemic, which could lead to serious complications if not treated.
Antonyms
How High
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
8.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
hypocalcemic = calcemic (semi-transparent) = hypo + calc + emic
The prefix hypo- clearly means 'low,' but the base calcemic is a specialized medical term referring to calcium in the blood.
Etymology
Hypocalcemic is built from hypo- meaning 'low', calcium the mineral in bones and blood, and a part like -emia meaning 'in the blood'. So it literally means 'low calcium in the blood', which explains why the adjective describes that medical condition.