Are there any native Spanish speakers onboard? I'm trying to get an accurate translation of some medical conditions, and the usual translation websites are a bit too literal. The phrases are:

-mal de pecho
-enfermadades del Corazon
-irritation de higado

I'd be really happy if someone can help me with these :-)

I don't speak Spanish well enough to help you, Juno, but if its any consolation, by coincidence, I am trying to READ an academic article in Spanish this morning. Its hideously slow going, but so far, so good (I think). If I am not sure on some terms I am checking them on translation websites, but am surprised at what I do understand. If you do not have any success, send me a PM, I have some friends in the US that are Hispanic and speak Spanish, and might be able to give a translation--I could email them and see if they might help.

I'm not a native speaker either, but use to study Spanish a lot. Those don't strike me as terribly technical. I'd say
-chest or breast problem
-heart diseases
-inflammation of the liver (is it "hígado"?).
You probably still want to ask a native speaker though - preferably from the same region as your text.

Thanks guys! ProcrastinPro, your translations are very helpful. I just wondered if there were some nuances to the meanings that only a fluent or native speaker would get; for example one of them translated automatically as "liver irritation", but that could be either cirrhosis or infection, to my mind. Olivia, I may take up your offer! The book the info is from is about Mexican herbal medicine, and I bought it from Amazon not realising it was entirely in Spanish...of which my knowldege iz zero. Good luck with your paper!

Let me know, Juno, if you need any extra translation help and I would be glad to email and see if I can get some translation for you. One person who comes to mind has done some translation relating to helping people get medical benefits based on medical conditions or disabilities, so she MIGHT have some insight in translation of medical terms.

Not cirrhosis, I don't think, there's a perfectly good cognate for that. These are really general/conversational, for instance 'mal de X' basically means something's wrong with X. Not doctor's report territory.
Anyway I'm sure Olivia's friend knows and maybe you've already got in touch now.

Hi Juno,

I would translate these as follows:

mal de pecho = chest pain (probably related to pain on the chest /? cardiac origin)
enfermedades del corazon = heart disease / coronary heart disease
irritation del higado = ? strange term, does not sound like a proper medical term, maybe fatty liver disease of even hepatitis. Could also be related to abnormalities at histological level?

Thanks guys. Given that the terms come from a Mexican guide to traditional herbal medicine (or so it seems to my non-Spanish-reading brain), it is probable that some of them are quite general terms. I will include the translations given here from you all: it seems that you all agree on the meanings, which is really helpful.

Actually, still on the medical translation side of things: I'm also discussing the concept of culture-bound syndromes, in particular the Hispanic concept of "susto", or sudden fright. Does anyone know - perhaps Olivia, in particular may know - if this syndrome is still commonplace in Hispanic younger people in the US? Or is it very traditional and restricted to older people?

Apologies for asking you to effectively do my research for me:$. Feel free to tell me to naff off!