A
Key
Green: is a medical procedure.
Orange is medicine.
Blue are diseases and conditions.
Purple is equipment.
Black is "other".
- A -
▪ Abortion: An elective procedure to terminate a pregnancy.
▪ Addiction: A condition where a person becomes psychologically (and sometimes physically) dependent on a drug. In addition to opioids, illicit drugs and other pharmaceuticals such as amphetamines, barbituates or benzodiazepines can be addictive, as can other substances such as nicotine and alcohol. Once a person becomes addicted, trying to quit the drug becomes very difficult as the body goes through physical withdrawal symptoms which lead to cravings which can overwhelm the ability to focus on other tasks. Withdrawal symptoms can include nausea, fever, sensitivity to touch and light, insomnia, heightened awareness and many others.
▪ Addison's disease: An endocrine disorder affecting the adrenal glands where the adrenal glands fail to produce cortisol and sometimes mineralcorticol steroids. The adrenal glands are located directly above the kidneys (one above each kidney). Symptoms are generally nonspecific, which can make Addison's very difficult to diagnose. Symptoms include fatigue, weakness, unintentional weight loss, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, adult onset allergies, hyperpigmentation, and generalized anxiety. Most diagnoses occur when a patient experiences an adrenal crisis, characterized by lightheadedness or dizziness, weakness, sweating, tremors, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, extreme low blood pressure, and even loss of consciousness. An adrenal crisis is a medical emergency that can result in death.
▪ Adenoma: A generally benign growth that can appear on several structures and organs, particularly the colon, kidneys, adrenal gland, thyroid gland, pituitary gland, liver, the breasts, or the appendix. Most adenomas are harmless, but are generally removed as a matter of course as they can often become malignant or produce hormones in larger than normal quantities.
▪ Adrenaline: A hormone produced in the adrenal gland. It is produced by the body in response to fear, anxiety, stress or other intense emotion. Adrenaline has the effect of allowing the body to increase its uptake of sugar to the cells, which has the effect of raising the heart rate, increasing respiration, and making the body less sensitive to pain. In normal circumstances, this makes the human body stronger and faster for short periods of time so that it can respond to dangerous situations. Adrenaline is also the standard treatment for anaphylactic shock and is also used for the treatment of radiation sickness.
▪ African Trypansomiasis (Sleeping Sickness): A parasitic disease transmitted by the tsetse fly. It is endemic in much of Africa and affects both cattle and humans. The prevalence of the disease and the ease of its spread often affects the ability of either humans or cattle to inhabit a given area. The primary symptom of the disease is hypersomnia or excessive sleep, although the disease can also cause insomnia. In all cases, the disease greatly affects brain function and eventually causes severe neurological symptoms before almost inevitably resulting in death.
▪ AIDS: The result of infection by the HIV virus. The virus destroys the patient's immune system, leaving them susceptible to any infection or other disease that they contract.
▪ Alcoholism: any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite health problems and negative social consequences. Modern medical definitions describe alcoholism as a disease and addiction which results in a persistent use of alcohol despite negative consequences.
▪ Allergy: Any disorder where a patient has a runaway histamine response to foreign matter entering the body through the skin, digestive tract or mucous membranes. Most allergies are merely a nuisance to the patient, but some reactions can be genuinely life threatening. Some conditions described as allergies are actually other disorders where exposure to a certain material causes other discomfort in the patient. For example, lactose intolerance is not an allergy (it is caused by a lack of a particular enzyme used to digest the natural sugars in milk), but exhibits many of the same symptoms.
▪ Alzheimer's Disease: A terminal, progressive disease of the brain. Although it is not fatal in and of itself, its progression results in a patient ultimately being unable to cope with routine daily tasks and, ultimately, being totally able to care for their health or hygiene. Alzheimer's usually presents as an inability to do tasks the patient typically did on a routine basis. Patients may be unable to perform the tasks required of their work. Next, short term memory starts to disappear, with patients being totally unable to remember what task they are supposed to be performing. Finally, the patient is total unable to remember anything that happened even a few minutes previously and becomes increasingly unable to do routine chores such as dressing themselves.
▪ Amputation: A surgical procedure where either a portion or all of a limb is permanently removed. Although it is perhaps the earliest of all surgical procedures it is rarely used today. It is used in cases of severe aggressive infection (such as necrotizing fasciitis) or severe crushing trauma to the limb. However, even in the later case, reconstructive vascular surgery is far more common.
▪ Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease): A progressive neurological disorder which eventually robs the body of it's ability to control its muscles. During this period of time, the mental faculties of the patient remain intact. It can strike at any time during adulthood and, once diagnosed, it is progressive and eventually fatal. During this period of time, the patient eventually becomes fully paralyzed to the point of no longer being able to talk in many cases, but in all cases to the point of quadriplegia.
▪ Anaphylactic Shock: A life threatening condition caused by a runaway histamine response to an allergic reaction.
▪ Anemia: One of a number of diseases that leads to a shortage of red blood cells in the blood. If untreated, anemia is invariably fatal. Many forms of anemia can be treated by treating or managing the underlying condition. However, when red blood cell counts fall below a certain level, a blood transfusion is usually required to replenish the level of red blood cells in a patient.
▪ Anesthesia: Any substance which prevents a person from feeling pain. They differ from painkillers, which merely lessen the effect of pain. Anasthetics come in two types:
- Local, such as novocaine. Local anasthetics work by blocking nerve impulses in the area where the anasthetic is administered. These are useful for such work as stitching up wounds or working on teeth. Local anasthetics are usually quite safe and do not require any special preparation of the patient.
- General, such as nitrous oxide. General anasthetics work by making the patient unconscious and suppressing that part of the brain that processes pain signals. These are useful for major surgery where it is expected that the patient will be operated on for more than a short period of time. However, general anasthetics have numerous complications, the most serious of which is nausea which can result in vomitting if the patient has eaten. As such, they can only be used on patients who have not recently eaten. In addition, the longer the patient is under general anasthesia, the more difficult it is to bring them out of the anasthetic induced unconsciousness.
▪ Aneurysm: A weakness in an artery which results in the wall of the vessel being too weak to resist blood pressure. As a result, the vessel balloons at that point until it bursts, causing the death of the patient.
▪ Angiogram: Arteriography is a medical imaging technique in which an X-ray picture is taken to visualize the inner opening of blood filled structures, including arteries, veins and the heart chambers. Angiograms require the insertion of a catheter into a peripheral artery, e.g. the femoral artery. As blood has the same radiodensity as the surrounding tissues, a radiocontrast agent (which absorbs X-rays) is added to the blood to make angiography visualization possible. The angiographic X-Ray image shows shadows of the openings within the cardiovascular structures carrying blood (actually the radiocontrast agent within). The blood vessels or heart chambers themselves remain largely to totally invisible on the X-Ray image.
▪ Antacid: Several classes of drugs that prevent stomach acid from building up in the stomach. They are used by a variety of patients with ailments ranging from heartburn to acid reflux disease to gastric ulcers.
▪ Antibiotics: A class of medications that prevent the growth of bacteria in a living body while having minimal effect on other tissues or body functions.
▪ Anti-Venom: A biological product used in the treatment of venomous bites or stings.
▪ Aphasia: a symptom where a patient has difficulty in using language.
▪ Arrhythmia: An irregular heart beat. The muscles of the heart contract in a coordinated fashion to insure blood is efficiently pumped into the arteries. The small right ventricle is the first to contract, followed soon after by all the other muscles of the other three ventricles. However, if this rhythm is disrupted, the heart ceases to pump blood efficiently. As a result, the patient can easily become fatigued (especially when exerting themselves), can have chest pain, and may have difficulty standing suddenly. Usually, an arrhythmia can be detected through the use of a stethoscope, as a healthy heart has a distinctive rhythm. However, in many cases, the arrhythmia is not present when the body is at rest. In such cases, a stress test with an EKG is usually required to determine if the heart is beating regularly.
▪ Asthma: An autoimmune disease related to allergies, but also has a genetic component as it tends to run in families. In addition to normal allergy symptoms, asthmatic patients suffer increased histamine production in the lungs that constrict the bronchial tubes without the same complications as anaphylactic shock. However, severe asthma can be life threatening, and unlike most persons with severe allergies, asthma sufferers are usually sensitive to a large number of environmental allergens, such as pollen, dust and animal dander.
▪ Autoimmune Disease: Any disease where the body's immune system is active against healthy cells. It covers a wide variety of ailments with different underlying causes, but the ailments share several symptoms and outcomes, making diagnosis of a particular cause difficult. Untreated autoimmune conditions will often lead to organ failure, either due to the immune system attacking the organs directly, or creating large quantities of toxic substances that poison the organs.
▪ Autopsy: The thorough examination of a corpse's organs and tissues to determine the cause of death or any previously undiagnosed pathological conditions. The procedure is usually performed by a specially-trained doctor known as a pathologist.
By Letter
| A | | B | | C | | D | | E | | F | | G | | H | | I | | J | | K | | L | | M |
| N | | O | | P | | Q | | R | | S | | T | | U | | V | | W | | X | | Y | | Z |
Green: is a medical procedure.
Orange is medicine.
Blue are diseases and conditions.
Purple is equipment.
Black is "other".
- A -
▪ Abortion: An elective procedure to terminate a pregnancy.
▪ Addiction: A condition where a person becomes psychologically (and sometimes physically) dependent on a drug. In addition to opioids, illicit drugs and other pharmaceuticals such as amphetamines, barbituates or benzodiazepines can be addictive, as can other substances such as nicotine and alcohol. Once a person becomes addicted, trying to quit the drug becomes very difficult as the body goes through physical withdrawal symptoms which lead to cravings which can overwhelm the ability to focus on other tasks. Withdrawal symptoms can include nausea, fever, sensitivity to touch and light, insomnia, heightened awareness and many others.
▪ Addison's disease: An endocrine disorder affecting the adrenal glands where the adrenal glands fail to produce cortisol and sometimes mineralcorticol steroids. The adrenal glands are located directly above the kidneys (one above each kidney). Symptoms are generally nonspecific, which can make Addison's very difficult to diagnose. Symptoms include fatigue, weakness, unintentional weight loss, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, adult onset allergies, hyperpigmentation, and generalized anxiety. Most diagnoses occur when a patient experiences an adrenal crisis, characterized by lightheadedness or dizziness, weakness, sweating, tremors, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, extreme low blood pressure, and even loss of consciousness. An adrenal crisis is a medical emergency that can result in death.
▪ Adenoma: A generally benign growth that can appear on several structures and organs, particularly the colon, kidneys, adrenal gland, thyroid gland, pituitary gland, liver, the breasts, or the appendix. Most adenomas are harmless, but are generally removed as a matter of course as they can often become malignant or produce hormones in larger than normal quantities.
▪ Adrenaline: A hormone produced in the adrenal gland. It is produced by the body in response to fear, anxiety, stress or other intense emotion. Adrenaline has the effect of allowing the body to increase its uptake of sugar to the cells, which has the effect of raising the heart rate, increasing respiration, and making the body less sensitive to pain. In normal circumstances, this makes the human body stronger and faster for short periods of time so that it can respond to dangerous situations. Adrenaline is also the standard treatment for anaphylactic shock and is also used for the treatment of radiation sickness.
▪ African Trypansomiasis (Sleeping Sickness): A parasitic disease transmitted by the tsetse fly. It is endemic in much of Africa and affects both cattle and humans. The prevalence of the disease and the ease of its spread often affects the ability of either humans or cattle to inhabit a given area. The primary symptom of the disease is hypersomnia or excessive sleep, although the disease can also cause insomnia. In all cases, the disease greatly affects brain function and eventually causes severe neurological symptoms before almost inevitably resulting in death.
▪ AIDS: The result of infection by the HIV virus. The virus destroys the patient's immune system, leaving them susceptible to any infection or other disease that they contract.
▪ Alcoholism: any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite health problems and negative social consequences. Modern medical definitions describe alcoholism as a disease and addiction which results in a persistent use of alcohol despite negative consequences.
▪ Allergy: Any disorder where a patient has a runaway histamine response to foreign matter entering the body through the skin, digestive tract or mucous membranes. Most allergies are merely a nuisance to the patient, but some reactions can be genuinely life threatening. Some conditions described as allergies are actually other disorders where exposure to a certain material causes other discomfort in the patient. For example, lactose intolerance is not an allergy (it is caused by a lack of a particular enzyme used to digest the natural sugars in milk), but exhibits many of the same symptoms.
▪ Alzheimer's Disease: A terminal, progressive disease of the brain. Although it is not fatal in and of itself, its progression results in a patient ultimately being unable to cope with routine daily tasks and, ultimately, being totally able to care for their health or hygiene. Alzheimer's usually presents as an inability to do tasks the patient typically did on a routine basis. Patients may be unable to perform the tasks required of their work. Next, short term memory starts to disappear, with patients being totally unable to remember what task they are supposed to be performing. Finally, the patient is total unable to remember anything that happened even a few minutes previously and becomes increasingly unable to do routine chores such as dressing themselves.
▪ Amputation: A surgical procedure where either a portion or all of a limb is permanently removed. Although it is perhaps the earliest of all surgical procedures it is rarely used today. It is used in cases of severe aggressive infection (such as necrotizing fasciitis) or severe crushing trauma to the limb. However, even in the later case, reconstructive vascular surgery is far more common.
▪ Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease): A progressive neurological disorder which eventually robs the body of it's ability to control its muscles. During this period of time, the mental faculties of the patient remain intact. It can strike at any time during adulthood and, once diagnosed, it is progressive and eventually fatal. During this period of time, the patient eventually becomes fully paralyzed to the point of no longer being able to talk in many cases, but in all cases to the point of quadriplegia.
▪ Anaphylactic Shock: A life threatening condition caused by a runaway histamine response to an allergic reaction.
▪ Anemia: One of a number of diseases that leads to a shortage of red blood cells in the blood. If untreated, anemia is invariably fatal. Many forms of anemia can be treated by treating or managing the underlying condition. However, when red blood cell counts fall below a certain level, a blood transfusion is usually required to replenish the level of red blood cells in a patient.
▪ Anesthesia: Any substance which prevents a person from feeling pain. They differ from painkillers, which merely lessen the effect of pain. Anasthetics come in two types:
- Local, such as novocaine. Local anasthetics work by blocking nerve impulses in the area where the anasthetic is administered. These are useful for such work as stitching up wounds or working on teeth. Local anasthetics are usually quite safe and do not require any special preparation of the patient.
- General, such as nitrous oxide. General anasthetics work by making the patient unconscious and suppressing that part of the brain that processes pain signals. These are useful for major surgery where it is expected that the patient will be operated on for more than a short period of time. However, general anasthetics have numerous complications, the most serious of which is nausea which can result in vomitting if the patient has eaten. As such, they can only be used on patients who have not recently eaten. In addition, the longer the patient is under general anasthesia, the more difficult it is to bring them out of the anasthetic induced unconsciousness.
▪ Aneurysm: A weakness in an artery which results in the wall of the vessel being too weak to resist blood pressure. As a result, the vessel balloons at that point until it bursts, causing the death of the patient.
▪ Angiogram: Arteriography is a medical imaging technique in which an X-ray picture is taken to visualize the inner opening of blood filled structures, including arteries, veins and the heart chambers. Angiograms require the insertion of a catheter into a peripheral artery, e.g. the femoral artery. As blood has the same radiodensity as the surrounding tissues, a radiocontrast agent (which absorbs X-rays) is added to the blood to make angiography visualization possible. The angiographic X-Ray image shows shadows of the openings within the cardiovascular structures carrying blood (actually the radiocontrast agent within). The blood vessels or heart chambers themselves remain largely to totally invisible on the X-Ray image.
▪ Antacid: Several classes of drugs that prevent stomach acid from building up in the stomach. They are used by a variety of patients with ailments ranging from heartburn to acid reflux disease to gastric ulcers.
▪ Antibiotics: A class of medications that prevent the growth of bacteria in a living body while having minimal effect on other tissues or body functions.
▪ Anti-Venom: A biological product used in the treatment of venomous bites or stings.
▪ Aphasia: a symptom where a patient has difficulty in using language.
▪ Arrhythmia: An irregular heart beat. The muscles of the heart contract in a coordinated fashion to insure blood is efficiently pumped into the arteries. The small right ventricle is the first to contract, followed soon after by all the other muscles of the other three ventricles. However, if this rhythm is disrupted, the heart ceases to pump blood efficiently. As a result, the patient can easily become fatigued (especially when exerting themselves), can have chest pain, and may have difficulty standing suddenly. Usually, an arrhythmia can be detected through the use of a stethoscope, as a healthy heart has a distinctive rhythm. However, in many cases, the arrhythmia is not present when the body is at rest. In such cases, a stress test with an EKG is usually required to determine if the heart is beating regularly.
▪ Asthma: An autoimmune disease related to allergies, but also has a genetic component as it tends to run in families. In addition to normal allergy symptoms, asthmatic patients suffer increased histamine production in the lungs that constrict the bronchial tubes without the same complications as anaphylactic shock. However, severe asthma can be life threatening, and unlike most persons with severe allergies, asthma sufferers are usually sensitive to a large number of environmental allergens, such as pollen, dust and animal dander.
▪ Autoimmune Disease: Any disease where the body's immune system is active against healthy cells. It covers a wide variety of ailments with different underlying causes, but the ailments share several symptoms and outcomes, making diagnosis of a particular cause difficult. Untreated autoimmune conditions will often lead to organ failure, either due to the immune system attacking the organs directly, or creating large quantities of toxic substances that poison the organs.
▪ Autopsy: The thorough examination of a corpse's organs and tissues to determine the cause of death or any previously undiagnosed pathological conditions. The procedure is usually performed by a specially-trained doctor known as a pathologist.
By Letter
| A | | B | | C | | D | | E | | F | | G | | H | | I | | J | | K | | L | | M |
| N | | O | | P | | Q | | R | | S | | T | | U | | V | | W | | X | | Y | | Z |