Medical Terminology

Diseases

Whether you are researching your ancestry for fun or to determine a family medical history, death certificates are a useful document to find. But what happens when you cannot decipher the cause of death? Or perhaps you have uncovered some family letters that discuss an ancestor’s recent illness but you do not recognize the name of the disease? These lists were compiled for just these reasons – to help us all to get the most information out of the records we find. Unfortunately, we have no lists as yet that assist with reading the doctor’s handwriting.

This is not intended to be taken as medical advice or to be used for diagnosing ailments at home.

3 Responses to Medical Terminology

  1. Sandra Sinclair says:

    I have come across another term that is useful. I had noticed that a particular ancestor of mine had never worked outside the home, despite the fact that the entire rest of the family did. I finally learned why when in a later census the reason given for her not working was “melancholia”, which would refer to a mental illness, likely depression.

  2. V Ashford says:

    This will be a really useful tool going forward.

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