Medical Suffix -pathy: Meaning, Examples, and Usage

The combining form -pathy (Greek pathos = suffering, disease) denotes a disease, disorder, or pathological condition of the organ/system indicated by the prefix.

Common Examples by System

Term	Breakdown	Meaning
Neuropathy	neur(o) + -pathy	Nerve disease (peripheral neuropathy: numbness, pain, weakness)
Cardiomyopathy	cardi(o) + my(o) + -pathy	Heart muscle disease (dilated, hypertrophic, restrictive)
Retinopathy	retin(o) + -pathy	Retinal disease (diabetic, hypertensive, prematurity)
Nephropathy	nephr(o) + -pathy	Kidney disease (diabetic, IgA, analgesic)
Myopathy	my(o) + -pathy	Muscle disease (inflammatory, metabolic, toxic)
Osteopathy	oste(o) + -pathy	Bone disease (also: osteopathic medicine philosophy)
Encephalopathy	encephal(o) + -pathy	Brain dysfunction (metabolic, toxic, hypoxic, hepatic)
Psychopathy	psych(o) + -pathy	Personality disorder (antisocial traits)

Usage Notes

• -pathy = disease of; distinct from -itis (inflammation), -oma (tumor), -osis (condition/process).
• Some terms are syndromic (e.g., neuropathy = many etiologies).
• Combining vowel (usually 'o') links root to suffix.

Mastering -pathy unlocks hundreds of diagnoses across specialties.