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4 French aCronyms decoded: HEPATITIS B9/12/2018
At first glance, in a document describing a patients' lab work results, these abbreviations appear to be a jumble of similar letters. For example, "La sérologie VHC est négative. La sérologie VHB montre Ac anti-HBS X.XX, Ag HBS X.XX, Ac anti-HBC X.XX et Ag HBe X.XX."
Two important pieces of the puzzle to recognize are anticorps (ac or ac anti-XXX) = antibody (ab) and antigène (Ag) = antigen (Ag). Next, it is important to recognize that S, C, and e are the same in French and English (surface, core, and e).
Thus, my translation of the above sentence reads, "The HCV serology test was negative. The HBV serology test found HBsAb X.XX, HBsAg X.XX, HBcAb X.XX, and HBeAg X.XX."
Be sure to proofread side-by-side with the source! This ensures an Ag doesn't end up where an Ab belongs and prevents similar mistakes. Comments are closed.
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