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What does -ectasis mean in medical terms?
-ectasis
Meaning: dilation; expansion
Type: Suffix
A suffix goes at the very end of a word, after the root. On this page: what -ectasis means, and real medical words that use it, each broken down into its parts.
Example words using -ectasis
bronchiectasis
bronchi (airways) + -ectasis (dilation) = permanent widening of the airways
bronchi (airways) + -ectasis (dilation) = permanent widening of the airways
atelectasis
a- (incomplete) + tel (end/complete) + -ectasis (expansion) = incomplete expansion; collapsed lung tissue
a- (incomplete) + tel (end/complete) + -ectasis (expansion) = incomplete expansion; collapsed lung tissue
Shortened forms
Charts and notes shorten long terms — see the Medical Abbreviations guide for the short forms you will meet in real records.
Please note: This section teaches the language of medicine — what word parts mean and how terms are built. It is an educational reference, not medical advice. For the meaning of a word in your own medical record, ask the clinician who wrote it.