Lost in Translation: Teenagers' Understanding of Common Medical Jargon

In health care conversations, clinicians continue to use medical jargon despite assuming they are communicating clearly, causing confusion for patients. Prior studies have evaluated adults' perception of medical jargon, but few studies have evaluated how teenagers perceive it.

To characterize teenagers' comprehension of common phrases used in medical settings via a cross-sectional, survey-based investigation.

A total of 71 teenagers aged between 13 and 17 years were recruited at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair to participate in an anonymous survey assessing their understanding of common phrases a doctor might say or write. Responses were coded as correct, partially correct, or incorrect by 2 independent researchers, with a third reconciling discrepancies. Secondary analyses evaluated the associations between participant demographics and understanding.

Teenagers demonstrated a poor understanding of many phrases evaluated. While 97% knew that "negative cancer screening" results meant they did not have cancer, fewer (69%) understood that "the tumor is progressing" was unwelcome news. More teenagers understood "your blood test shows me you do not have an infection in your blood" (89%) vs "your blood culture was negative" (52%). Only 10% understood that "bugs in the urine" conveyed a urinary tract infection, with 37% expressing a literal interpretation. None knew what was meant by an "occult infection" nor by "febrile," with 13% believing that it was related to fertility or sexual activity.

Teenagers frequently misunderstood common phrases used within a medical context, with interpretations, at times, representing the opposite of what a health care provider intended.