MT Training > Transcription rules

V. Capitalization

Capitalize...

• Abbreviations when the words they represent are capitalized 
• The first word following a colon if it begins a complete sentence or is part of an outline entry 
• Most abbreviations of English words 
• The first letter of chemical elements 
• The names of the days of the week, months, holidays, historic events and religious festivals 
• The names of specific departments or sections in the institution only when the institution name is included 
• The names of diseases that include proper nouns, eponyms or genus names 
• The trade or brand names of drugs 
• A quote when it is a complete sentence 
• The names of races, peoples, religions and languages. Black, as a race designation would be capitalized, however client preferences may differ.

Do Not Capitalize...

• The spelled out names of the chemical elements 
• The seasons of the year 
• The common names of diseases 
• The names of viruses unless they include a proper noun 
• Generic drug names 
• The common noun following the brand name. Example - Tylenol tablets 
• The names of medical or surgical specialties 
• Designations based on skin color, like "a tall white man." 

VI. Hyphenation
These prefixes do not require the use of a connecting hyphen in compound terms: 
 

Examples - antecubital not ante-cubitalAlso Correct - antithesis, bitemporal, counterproductive, defibrillated, extrapyramidal, infraumbilical, interpersonal, intracranial, microhematuria, midline, nontender, nondistended, nonfocal, nonspecific, noncontributory, noncompliance, nonicteric, nonsmall, overestimate, overweight, preoperative, postoperative, posttraumatic, pseudogout, semicircular, sublingual, superimposed, supramammary, transvaginal, ultraviolet, underweight, weightbearing.

Do use a hyphen with prefixes ending in a or i and a base word beginning with the same letter. Example - anti-inflammatory.
Do use a hyphen when compounded with the prefix self. 
Example - self-administered, self-monitored. 
For Clarification - Use a hyphen after a prefix if not using a hyphen would change the meaning of the word.  Examples - re-cover (to cover again) versus recover (regain)

 

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