How to Pronounce Vascular Malformation of the GI Tract

Say it like this: VAS-kyoo-lar mal-for-MAY-shun of the jee-eye trakt. Break it into four main parts: VAS-kyoo-lar (the blood vessel part), mal-for-MAY-shun (the abnormal formation part), of, and then jee-eye trakt (GI tract, said letter by letter). The stress falls on the first syllable of "vascular" and the third syllable of "malformation."

Vascular means 'related to blood vessels.' The word comes from the Latin word "vasculum," which means a small vessel or tube. Whenever you see "vascular" in a medical word, it's referring to the system of arteries, veins, and capillaries that carry blood through your body.

Malformation means 'an abnormal or incorrect formation or shape.' The word breaks down into "mal" (which means bad or wrong) and "formation" (which means the way something is shaped or formed). So a malformation is simply something that didn't form the way it should have.

GI is short for gastrointestinal, which refers to your stomach and intestines. When you see "of the GI tract" after a diagnosis, it tells you exactly where in your body the problem is located—in your digestive system. The letters G-I are pronounced individually: "jee-eye."

You could say "abnormally formed blood vessels in the stomach and intestines" to describe it in everyday language. The medical term is more specific and precise, but it's really just describing blood vessels that didn't develop normally in your digestive system.

People often stress the wrong syllable in "malformation"—they might say mal-for-MAY-shun when it should be mal-for-MAY-shun (with the stress on the third syllable, the "MAY" part). Another common mistake is rushing through "vascular" and saying it like "VAS-kyoo-ler" instead of clearly saying "VAS-kyoo-lar."

Yes! Other medical words with "vascular" include "cardiovascular" (heart and blood vessels), "cerebrovascular" (brain blood vessels), and "vascularization" (the process of blood vessels forming). All of these words relate to blood vessels in different parts of the body.

You might hear a doctor say: "The endoscopy revealed a vascular malformation of the GI tract." This sentence correctly uses the full medical term to describe what was found during a medical procedure.