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drjasonmd · 06-03-2007, 05:38 PM

Hi Maria,

I'm not sure if descontiguidad is a "word", as physicians are fond of making up there own vocabulary, but I see it on radiology reports all the time. Also, since most of my career has been spent in the north of Mexico, it could be one of those Tjuanismos that got mixed into the language and will need another 100 years before it shows up in a dictionary. I just spent a week translating a bunch of charts from Barcelona and they were filled with terms and abbreviations that didn't show up in any medical dictionary, English, Spanish, or Catalan. Many of them didn't even show up on Google (in ANY context).

As for the use of nonunion, it really depends on the context in which it is being used. A nonunion is just that, the lack of a union where there should be one. A new nonunion in a bone is a fracture. However, if it is a nonunion after a sufficient amount of time has passed since the original fracture, it becomes a "delayed union." Give it sufficient time and it becomes a pseudoarthrosis. All of these terms can still be classified as nonunions. It depends on the context.

Unfortunately for translators, there are a lot of false cognates in medicine. Context is everything. Since medicine is such a closed community with its own jargon (often done so intentionally to keep people from understanding what we are saying. . . en serio!), you have to understand the source and the target jargon to arrive at a good translation.

As many translators have noticed, the language used in a medical texbook or journal article (which can be cross referenced pretty well using a good medical dictionary and Google) is very different from the language used in patient charts. Many terms and abbreviations are only used in certain regions and can be almost impossible to translate. I know because it happens to me all the time. The problem is so bad that I have glossaries that I have compiled for almost every Spanish speaking country and I still have to email colleagues in different regions when I hit a snag. Many attempts have been made to standardize medical language, but when you have this many egos involved, it's a lost cause.

Saludos!

06-03-2007, 05:38 PM	#5
drjasonmd New Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 2 Rep Power: 0	Hi Maria, I'm not sure if descontiguidad is a "word", as physicians are fond of making up there own vocabulary, but I see it on radiology reports all the time. Also, since most of my career has been spent in the north of Mexico, it could be one of those Tjuanismos that got mixed into the language and will need another 100 years before it shows up in a dictionary. I just spent a week translating a bunch of charts from Barcelona and they were filled with terms and abbreviations that didn't show up in any medical dictionary, English, Spanish, or Catalan. Many of them didn't even show up on Google (in ANY context). As for the use of nonunion, it really depends on the context in which it is being used. A nonunion is just that, the lack of a union where there should be one. A new nonunion in a bone is a fracture. However, if it is a nonunion after a sufficient amount of time has passed since the original fracture, it becomes a "delayed union." Give it sufficient time and it becomes a pseudoarthrosis. All of these terms can still be classified as nonunions. It depends on the context. Unfortunately for translators, there are a lot of false cognates in medicine. Context is everything. Since medicine is such a closed community with its own jargon (often done so intentionally to keep people from understanding what we are saying. . . en serio!), you have to understand the source and the target jargon to arrive at a good translation. As many translators have noticed, the language used in a medical texbook or journal article (which can be cross referenced pretty well using a good medical dictionary and Google) is very different from the language used in patient charts. Many terms and abbreviations are only used in certain regions and can be almost impossible to translate. I know because it happens to me all the time. The problem is so bad that I have glossaries that I have compiled for almost every Spanish speaking country and I still have to email colleagues in different regions when I hit a snag. Many attempts have been made to standardize medical language, but when you have this many egos involved, it's a lost cause. Saludos!