Polish gynecology glossary
The report is in Polish, the prescription is in Polish, and so is the reception desk — while an interpreter in the consulting room is far from guaranteed. These are the words that actually turn up: not a textbook, but what is printed on your piece of paper, plus the false friends that cause the most expensive misunderstandings.
Why this exists
Medical Polish is a separate language inside Polish. Someone who copes comfortably day to day still stumbles over an ultrasound report, because half the words come from Latin and the other half are everyday words used in a specialist sense.
Three situations where it costs money and nerves: you do not understand the report and assume the worst; you do not understand the prescription and take the medicine wrongly; you cannot name the symptom and leave the appointment without having said the important thing.
One note up front: consultations at my practice are held in Polish, Russian and Ukrainian — not in English. This site is in English, and this glossary is here because Polish paperwork reaches everyone regardless of the language they were seen in.
Reception and paperwork
The words that come up in the first phone call and sit at the top of every document.
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| przychodnia / poradnia | clinic / outpatient department |
| rejestracja | reception |
| wizyta | appointment |
| lekarz prowadzący | lead doctor |
| położna | midwife |
| skierowanie | referral |
| zaświadczenie | certificate |
| wypis | discharge summary |
| zabieg | procedure |
| znieczulenie | anaesthesia |
| izba przyjęć | emergency admissions |
| pilne | urgent |
Tests and examinations
What appears on a referral and on the sample tube. Wymaz is a swab, posiew is a culture — different things, and the pair most often confused.
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| cytologia | cytology, Pap smear |
| wymaz | swab |
| wymaz z pochwy / biocenoza | vaginal swab |
| posiew | culture |
| antybiogram | sensitivity testing |
| USG | ultrasound |
| USG przezpochwowe | transvaginal ultrasound |
| USG dopplerowskie | Doppler ultrasound |
| kolposkopia | colposcopy |
| biopsja / wycinek | biopsy |
| histopatologia | histopathology |
| morfologia | full blood count |
| badanie ogólne moczu | urinalysis |
| grupa krwi | blood group |
| test obciążenia glukozą (OGTT) | glucose tolerance test |
| na czczo | fasting |
Anatomy
A warning about jajnik and jajowód: one letter apart, and different organs — ovary and fallopian tube.
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| macica | uterus |
| szyjka macicy | cervix |
| endometrium / błona śluzowa macicy | endometrium |
| jajnik | ovary |
| jajowód | fallopian tube |
| pochwa | vagina |
| srom | vulva |
| piersi | breasts |
| węzeł chłonny | lymph node |
| pęcherzyk / pęcherzyk Graafa | follicle |
| ciałko żółte | corpus luteum |
| miednica mniejsza | lesser pelvis |
Symptoms
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| upławy / wydzielina | discharge |
| świąd | itching |
| pieczenie | burning |
| krwawienie | bleeding |
| plamienie | spotting |
| miesiączka / okres | period |
| ból podbrzusza | lower abdominal pain |
| uderzenia gorąca | hot flushes |
| suchość pochwy | vaginal dryness |
| nietrzymanie moczu | urinary incontinence |
Diagnoses and findings
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| nadżerka / ektopia | cervical ectropion |
| torbiel | cyst |
| mięśniak | fibroid |
| polip | polyp |
| endometrioza | endometriosis |
| zespół policystycznych jajników (PCOS) | polycystic ovary syndrome |
| grzybica pochwy / drożdżyca | thrush, candidiasis |
| waginoza bakteryjna | bacterial vaginosis |
| rzęsistkowica | trichomoniasis |
| kłykciny kończyste | genital warts |
| wirus brodawczaka ludzkiego (HPV) | human papillomavirus (HPV) |
| niepłodność | infertility |
| poronienie | miscarriage |
| ciąża pozamaciczna | ectopic pregnancy |
| przekwitanie / menopauza | menopause |
Words on a report
The most useful table of the lot. Prawidłowy on a report means "normal", and it is the word to look for first.
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| wynik | result |
| rozpoznanie | diagnosis |
| opis | report |
| zalecenia | recommendations |
| prawidłowy / w normie | normal |
| nieprawidłowy | abnormal |
| bez zmian | no change |
| zmiana ogniskowa | focal lesion |
| łagodny | benign |
| złośliwy | malignant |
| podejrzenie | suspected |
| kontrola za 6 miesięcy | follow-up in 6 months |
| materiał nadaje się do oceny | sample adequate |
Prescription and pharmacy
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| recepta | prescription |
| dawkowanie | dosage |
| globulki / czopki dopochwowe | vaginal pessaries |
| tabletki dopochwowe | vaginal tablets |
| maść / krem / żel | ointment / cream / gel |
| doustnie | by mouth |
| doraźnie | as needed |
| przeciwwskazania | contraindications |
| działania niepożądane | side effects |
| refundacja / odpłatność | reimbursement level |
| bez recepty | over the counter |
The words that mislead
A separate table for cases where a Polish word looks reassuringly familiar and means something else. These produce the costliest mistakes.
| Polish word | What it looks like | What it actually means |
|---|---|---|
| prawidłowy | "correct", "proper" | normal. On a report this is good news |
| łagodny | "mild", "gentle" | benign. The single most important word in the description of any lesion |
| guz | "tumour" in the sense of cancer | simply a mass. It may be łagodny or złośliwy |
| zmiana | "change" | a lesion, an altered area |
| nadżerka | "erosion that must be burned off" | usually ectropion — a normal variant in younger women that needs no treatment in itself |
| zabieg | a treatment session | a procedure or an operation |
| poronienie | something about giving birth | miscarriage. Birth is poród |
| doraźnie | "urgently" | as needed — how it appears on a prescription |
| ryczałt | a lump-sum payment | the fixed co-payment for a reimbursed medicine |
Phrases worth having
The minimum needed to book an appointment and describe what is happening:
| English | Polish |
|---|---|
| I would like to make an appointment with a gynecologist | Chciałabym umówić się do ginekologa |
| The first day of my last period was… | Pierwszy dzień ostatniej miesiączki był… |
| I have discharge and itching | Mam upławy i świąd |
| I have pain in the lower abdomen | Boli mnie podbrzusze |
| I am pregnant, about … weeks | Jestem w ciąży, około… tygodnia |
| I take the contraceptive pill | Przyjmuję tabletki antykoncepcyjne |
| I am allergic to… | Mam uczulenie na… |
| I need a certificate for my employer | Potrzebuję zaświadczenia dla pracodawcy |
| May I have a copy of the result? | Czy mogę dostać kopię wyniku? |
At the practice
I see patients in Warsaw at ul. Głębocka 9. Consultations are held in Polish, Russian and Ukrainian; Russian and Ukrainian records and results I read without translation. This site is in English, but appointments are not conducted in English.
No referral or NFZ insurance is needed and a PESEL number is not required. Prices are on the prices page.
Short answers
How do you say "cytology" in Polish?
Cytologia. A Pap smear is called cytologia or badanie cytologiczne. A swab is wymaz, a culture is posiew, a result is wynik and the written report is opis.
How do you say "ultrasound" in Polish?
USG. A transvaginal scan is USG przezpochwowe, a pelvic scan is USG miednicy mniejszej, a breast scan is USG piersi and a Doppler study is USG dopplerowskie.
How is HPV written on Polish paperwork?
HPV, or wirus brodawczaka ludzkiego. Reports usually say HPV HR for high-risk types. Genital warts are kłykciny kończyste.
What does "prawidłowy" mean on a report?
Normal. It looks like "correct" and is in fact good news. The opposite is nieprawidłowy. "Bez zmian" means no change, "łagodny" means benign and "złośliwy" means malignant.
Is machine translation good enough for a Polish medical report?
No. Medical abbreviations — ASC-US, LSIL, BI-RADS, NILM — come back wrong or are dropped altogether, and they carry the meaning of the report. Photograph the whole sheet and show it to a doctor instead.
This text describes the general picture and does not replace a consultation. Timings and indications differ from woman to woman and are decided at the appointment, from your history and test results.
