DICTIONARY OF MEDICAL ACRONYMS & ABBREVIATIONS - 5th Ed. (2005) FRONT MATTER TITLE PAGE Dictionary of Medical Acronyms & Abbreviations 5th Edition Compiled and edited by Stanley Jablonski
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PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION Acronyms and abbreviations are used extensively in medicine, science and technology for good reason⎯they are more essential in such fields. It would be difficult to imagine how one could write down chemical and mathematical formulas and equations without using abbreviations or symbols. In medicine, they are used as a convenient shorthand in writing medical records, instructions, and prescriptions, and as space-saving devices in printed literature. It is easier and more economical to write down the acronyms HETE and RAAS than their full names 12-L-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid and renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, respectively. The main reason for abbreviations is said to be economy. Some actually save space in print, such as acronyms for the names of institutions and organizational units, as well as being convenient to use. Many are used for other reasons, as for instance, when trying to be delica