Swedish abbreviations and expressions

Swedish abbreviations and expressions


• We have several readers, colleagues, who do not speak Swedish, making some abbreviations in translations extra difficult, why this page has been added.
• I don´t use dots at abbreviations, it´s a bit out of date.
• In addition to abbreviations in Sweden, there are often compilations of words like "inhalationssteroider" instead of "inhalation steroids", which often explain some strange translations.
• The letter k has come to replace c in an increasing number of medical words in Sweden, "klavikel" instead of "clavicle", however not for "cancer" and a bunch of other c-words.
• Several abbreviations are borrowed from the medical English, like "SAH" for subarachnoid hemorrhage.
• Finally, the most used abbreviations from me may be "ex" (exempelvis), meaning "e.g." in English, and "t ex" (till exempel) meaning "for example".
• I will continuously fill out the list below. Good luck reading translated Swedish! 🙂

- A -
Allmänpåverkad - allvarligt sjuk (with constitutional symptoms - seriously ill, bad condition, generally affected, in malaise)
AT - allmäntillstånd ("general condition" in the medical record)
AT - AT-läkare, allmän tjänstgöring (intern (physician))
AVA - Akutvårdsavdelning (HDU, high dependency unit or IICU, Intermediate Intensive Care Unit)


- B -
B - Blod, helblod (whole blood analysis)
bakjour - senior kollega, vanligen specialist, med övergripande ansvar (senior colleague on duty, usually specialist, with overall responsibility, on stand)
Beh - Behandling (treatment, Rx)
bl a, bla - bland annat, (among others)

- C -
CPAP - Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
Csv - Cerebrospinalvätska, liquor (csf, cerebrospinal fluid)


- D -
Diffdiagnoser - alternativa diagnoser (Differential diagnoses, Ddx)
Distalstatus - perifer undersökning (periferal evaluation)
dvs - det vill säga (i.e.)
DVT - djup ventrombos (deep vein thrombosis)
dålig - allmänpåverkad (bad condition, generally affected, in malaise)
Ddx - Differentials (Diffdiagnoser)


- E -
Erc - Erytrocyter (erythrocytes)
etc - etcetera (etc)
ev - eventuellt (eventual)
ex - exempelvis (e.g.)


- F -
F - Faeces, avföringsprov (faeces, stool samples)
fekal - av faeces (faeces, faeculent)
FAST - (Focused Assessment Sonography in Trauma)


- G -
g - gram (gram)
GCS - Glasgow Coma Scale
gipsskena (plaster slab)

- H -
HIA - Hjärt-intensiv avdelning (cardiac intensive unit, or Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU))
HLR - hjärt-lung-räddning (CPR)
Hx - History (in Swedish: Tid sjd, tidigare sjukdomar, former diseases)
hö - höger (right)

- I -
im - intramuskulärt (intramuscular)
inj - injektion (injection, injectable)
inkl - inklusive (inclusive)
iv - intravenöst (intravenous)
IVA - intensivvårdsavdelning (ICU, intensive care unit)
IVA-mässig - i behov av IVA-placering (a candidate för the ICU dept)

- J -
jour - jourhavande läkare (doctor on call)

- K -
KAD - Kateter á demeure (IUC, indwelling urinary catheter)
kir jour - kirurgjour (surgeon on call)
KOL - Kronisk obstruktiv lungsjukdom (COPD, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

- L -
LE - lungemboli (PE, pulmonary embolus)
Lkc - Leukocyter (leucocytes)
LPK - Leukocyter, partikelkoncentration, "vita", (leucocytes, white blod cells count)


- M -
MAVA - Internmedicinsk akutvårdsavdelning (Internal Medicine High Dependency Unit) m fl - med flera - (and others)


- N -
NaCl - fysiologisk natriumklorid (physiologic sodium chloride)
NPH-odling - nasopharynxodling (nasopharyngeal culture)


- O -
OBS - observera (observe, N.B. nota bene)
OP - operationsavdelning (operation theater)
ort jour - ortopedjour (orthopedic surgeon on call)


- P -
pat - patient (patient)
P - Plasma (plasma)
po - per os - (per os, by the mouth)
PR - per rectum (rectal examination)

- Q -


- R -
rtg - röntgen - (X-ray)
RU - rektalundersökning (rectal examination)
Rx - Recepies (in Swedish: Recept, also Beh, Behandling (treatment))


- S -
SAH - subaraknoidalblödning (SAH, subarachnoidal hemorrage)
sc - subkutant (subcutaneous)
S - Serum (serum)
sårodling (wound culture)


- T -
TB - tuberkulos (tuberculosis)
TBC - äldre benämning för tuberkulos (older name for TB, tuberculosis)
t ex - till exempel (for example)
tid - tidigare (former)
timdiures - diures/tim (diuresis/time = ml/kg/hour)


- U -
U - Urin (urine)
ulj - ultraljud - (ultrasound, ultrasonification)
UNS - utan närmare specifikation (without further specification)
us - undersökning (examination)
UVI - urinvägsinfektion (UTI, urinary tract infection)


- V -
V-sond - ventrikelsond (nasogastric tube)
vb - vid behov (when needed, if necessary)
vä - vänster (left)


- X -
X - extrauterin graviditet (ectopic pregnancy)


- Y -

- Z -

- Å -
Åtg - Åtgärd (arrangements, treatments)

- Ä -

- Ö -