Isn’t it amazing the different things that the letter “x” can stand for in medicine? Especially for all you 3rd years, here is an incomplete list of the various abbreviations ending in “x” that you may very well encounter while trying to decipher a resident’s completely illegible progress note.

abx

antibiotics

bx

biopsy

btx

botulinum toxin

cx

culture

bcx

blood culture

ucx

urine culture

ctx

cortex

dx

diagnosis

ddx

differential diagnosis

fx

fracture

fhx

family history

gsh-px

glutathione peroxidase

gtx

granulocyte transfusion

hx

history

fhx

family history

pmhx

past medical history

pshx

past surgical history

shx

social history

htx

hemothorax

mtx

methotrexate

ptx

pneumothorax

rx

prescription(?!)

sx

sign

sx

symptom(!!)

stx

shiga toxin

tx

therapy

chemotx

chemotherapy

rtx

radiation therapy

tmx

trimethoprim/sulfa (AKA Bactrim®)