HTH Medical Abbreviation
The medical abbreviation "HTH" does not have a standardized, universally accepted meaning in clinical practice, and its use should be avoided in patient medical records due to high risk of misinterpretation.
Evidence on Medical Abbreviation Ambiguity
The provided evidence does not contain any guideline or research specifically defining "HTH" as a medical abbreviation. However, the research literature strongly demonstrates the dangers of non-standard abbreviations:
Only 20% of commonly used medical abbreviations achieved "generally accepted" status (defined as >50% of healthcare professionals providing the intended definition), with 75% having one or more alternative definitions 1
Healthcare professionals correctly interpret only 43% of abbreviations on average, with significant variation across disciplines—Foundation Year 1 doctors scored highest at 57%, while dieticians scored only 20% 2
Inter-group variation in abbreviation interpretation poses imminent clinical risk, with even specialty-specific teams (orthopaedic surgeons) correctly interpreting only 57% of their own field's abbreviations 3
Clinical Implications and Recommendations
Avoid using "HTH" or any non-standard abbreviations in medical documentation. The evidence demonstrates that:
Three-quarters of medical abbreviations have multiple contradictory definitions, creating communication errors in multidisciplinary care 1
Abbreviations that seem obvious to one specialty are frequently misunderstood by other healthcare team members, with some abbreviations achieving 0.5-3% correct interpretation rates 2
Modern patient care requires clear communication across multiple disciplines, leaving no room for ambiguity 3
Recommended Practice
Write out complete medical terms rather than using abbreviations like "HTH." If you encountered "HTH" intended to mean "height," spell out "height" in full. Healthcare institutions should: