Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

Ec(h)ocardiography, Ec(h)ocardiogram

English answer:

echocardiography, echocardiogram

Added to glossary by stra
Dec 8, 2004 12:30
19 yrs ago
16 viewers *
English term

Ec(h)ocardiography, Ec(h)ocardiogram

English Medical Medical (general) Orthography
Are the words written with or without 'h'? Or is an 'Echocardiogram' different from an 'Ecocardiogram'(so either exist)? I found both spellings and I'm confused.
TIA
Responses
5 +10 echocardiography, echocardiogram
5 +10 always echo
4 UK versus USA

Responses

+10
7 mins
Selected

echocardiography, echocardiogram

laut Dorland
echocardiogram (echo·car·dio·gram) (ek²o-kahr¢de-o-gram²) the record produced by echocardiography
http://www.mercksource.com/pp/us/cns/cns_hl_dorlands.jspzQzp...

Is it possible the other references to the other spelling stem from a different language?

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Note added at 10 mins (2004-12-08 12:40:43 GMT)
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You are right, there are about 500 googles for the incorrect spelling. Just goes to show....

correct spelling gets 232000 hits though
Peer comment(s):

agree Sven Petersson
2 mins
agree Elena Sgarbo (X) : Yes, here in the US, in Cardiology we always say / write "echo"
12 mins
agree Richard Benham
48 mins
Hi Richard :-) thanks
agree MMUlr
3 hrs
agree Pawel Gromek
3 hrs
agree cmorin
4 hrs
agree Java Cafe
4 hrs
agree Elena Petelos
6 hrs
agree KathyT
11 hrs
agree Jörgen Slet
11 hrs
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks to everyone. The points to Ariane because she was a little bit faster."
7 mins

UK versus USA

A quick check under google suggests that in the UK we use the original word "Echo..." (after all the principle is based on use of echoes), whereas in the USA they seem to have dropped the "h".
It all depends therefore on your target language, though as a purist (and a Brit) the version without "h" makes me feel quite ill......
Peer comment(s):

agree Deborah do Carmo
1 min
agree Ian Burley (X)
4 mins
disagree Richard Benham : I don't think they've dropeed the "h" in the US--a few swallows don't make a spring, and a lot of them are probably from Italian or something.
15 mins
well it wouldn't be the first time they've fiddled about with 'our' spelling, would it?
disagree cmorin : It is echocardiogram in the US and UK.
3 hrs
Something went wrong...
+10
8 mins

always echo

"eco" is wrong wrong wrong :-)

Just remember "sounds echo" - echocardiography uses ultrasound echoing off structures

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003869.htm
Definition

Echocardiogram is a test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of the heart. The picture is much more detailed than x-ray image and involves no radiation exposure.

How the test is performed

A trained sonographer performs the test, then your physician interprets the results. An instrument that transmits high-frequency sound waves called a transducer is placed on your ribs near the breast bone and directed toward the heart. The transducer picks up the echoes of the sound waves and transmits them as electrical impulses. The echocardiography machine converts these impulses into moving pictures of the heart.

Peer comment(s):

agree Ken Cox : eco- is short for 'ecological'. 'ecocardiography' is a true LOL misspelling (and most of the google hits are non-native-English sites)
7 mins
thanks :-)
agree Rajan Chopra : with Kenneth also
42 mins
thanks :-)
agree Richard Benham
46 mins
thanks :-)
agree Dylan Edwards : If you think of "echo" and "eco" (as in ecology) you can't go wrong (they're from two different Greek words).
3 hrs
agree cmorin : I have been in medical practice for over 15 years and have not come across the term ecocardiogram used for echocardiogram
3 hrs
agree Java Cafe
4 hrs
agree Elena Petelos
6 hrs
agree KathyT
11 hrs
agree Jörgen Slet
11 hrs
agree Veronica Prpic Uhing
13 hrs
Something went wrong...
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