How to Pronounce Arteriovenous Malformation

Say it like this: ar-TEER-ee-oh-VEE-nus mal-for-MAY-shun. The stress falls on the second syllable of the first word (TEER) and on the second syllable of the last word (MAY). If you break it into chunks, it's easier: say "ar-TEER-ee-oh" first, then "VEE-nus," then "mal-for-MAY-shun."

Many people stress the wrong syllable in "arteriovenous" and say ar-teer-ee-oh-vee-NUS instead of ar-TEER-ee-oh-VEE-nus. Remember: the stress is on TEER in the first part and on VEE in the second part, not at the end.

The whole term has 10 syllables: ar-TEER-ee-oh-VEE-nus (6) + mal-for-MAY-shun (4). Breaking it into smaller chunks like this makes it much easier to pronounce and remember.

"Arterio" comes from the Latin word for artery, which is a blood vessel that carries blood away from the heart. "Venous" comes from the Latin word for vein, which is a blood vessel that carries blood back to the heart. Together, these parts tell you that this condition involves both arteries and veins.

"Malformation" is made up of two parts: "mal" (meaning bad) and "formation" (meaning how something is shaped or structured). So malformation simply means something that didn't form the right way or is abnormally shaped.

It is commonly abbreviated as AVM and pronounced letter by letter: A-V-M. You'll often see doctors and medical writers use AVM as shorthand when talking about this condition.

Words like "artery," "arterial," "vein," and "venous" all share roots with this term. You might also hear "arteritis" (inflammation of an artery) or "venous thrombosis" (a clot in a vein)—these use the same Latin roots for blood vessels.

You might say: "The patient was referred to a neurologist because imaging studies showed an arteriovenous malformation in the brain." This sentence uses the term to describe what was found during medical testing.