Question | Answer |
Pathophysiology | The study of how disease affects body function. |
Pathology | The study of changes in cell/tissue structure related to disease or death. |
Health | Having the ability to maintain homeostasis when exposed to normal conditions. |
Disease | Being unable to maintain homeostasis when exposed to normal conditions. |
Etiology | The study of the cause of a disease. |
Genetic | A disease, condition, or trait that is inherited as a result of a single gene. |
Congenital | A disease, condition, or trait that is present at birth. |
Acquired | A disease, condition, or trait that developed because of being exposed to something during your life. |
Idiopathic | Without a clearly identified cause. |
Signs | Evidence of disease that is objective and can be seen, measured, or recorded. |
Symptoms | Evidence of a disease that is subjective and cannot be seen, measured, or recorded. |
Pathogenesis | The events that lead to the development of a disease and the signs and symptoms that occur as the disease progresses. |
Acute | A disease that develops and resolves rapidly. |
Chronic | A disease that develops gradually and lasts 3 months or longer. |
Remission | The lessening in severity of the symptoms of a disease. |
Exacerbation | An increase in the severity of a disease or any of its signs or symptoms. |
Local | A condition that is confined to one area. |
Systemic | A condition that affects the entire body. |
Endoscopy | A procedure that utilizes a fiber optic camera to view structures inside of the body. |
Radiodensity | The ability of an object to stop or slow radiation. |
X-ray | A visual recording of differences in radiodensity of anatomical structures. |
Contrast X-ray | X-rays that utilize a contrast media to increase the radiodensity of selected fluids within the body, producing an image of the structures containing the fluid. |
Ultrasound | A visual recording of differences in the rate of return and intensity of sound waves reflected off of objects within the body. |
Electrocardiogram | A recording of the electrical activity of the cardiac conduction system. |
Electroencephalogram | A recording of the electrical activity of the brain, most often recording the cerebral cortex. |
Spirometry | Any procedure used to measure a persons ability to move air or the capacities of the respiratory system. Often referred to as PFT's (pulmonary function tests) |
Chemotherapy | The use of chemicals to kill cells within the body. Two main types of chemotherapy are used-to kill cancer cells or microorganisms. |
Pharmacological | The use of drugs to treat disease. |
Palliative | Any form of treatment that relieves signs and symptoms without curing a disease. May include the use of medication (such as decongestant or pain reliever), therapeutic massage, counseling, physical therapy, orthotic devices, etc. |
Prognosis | A prediction of the likely outcome or consequence of having a disease. |
Sequela | A consequence of a previous disease (Ex: rheumatic heart disease sometimes occurs following a strep infection) |
Complications | A morbid process or event occurring during a disease that is not an essential part of the disease, although it may result from it. (Ex: blindness is a complication often associated with diabetes) |
Terminal | A disease likely to cause death. |
Trauma | The transfer of a harmful amount of energy. The energy may be mechanical, electrical, radiation, or thermal. |
Deficiency | Lacking in something that is essential. (Vitamin, glucose, protein, oxygen, water, etc) |
Intoxication | Being exposed to a toxic level of something. |
Hypertrophy | To increase in size. |
Atrophy | To decrease in size. |
Hyperplasia | An increase in the rate of mitosis and therefore cell number. |
Metaplasia | A change in cell or tissue structure. |
Dysplasia | Irregular cell or tissue structure. Often considered a potentially cancerous change. |
Neoplasia | Growth of cells and tissue into new areas, resulting in a tumor. May be benign or malignant. |
Inflammation | A protective response of tissue to injury or infection. Causes an increase in blood flow and pain in the affected region, as well as leokocytosis. |
Pyrogens | Chemicals that cause a fever. |
Leukocytosis | An increase in the number of white blood cells to more than 10,000 per mm. A WBC count of 15,000-25,000 commonly occurs as a result of infection, inflammation, or hemorrhage. |
Exudate | The excess fluid that accumulates at the site of inflammation. Contains a high level of proteins and neutrophils when compared to normal tissue fluid. |
Serous Exudate | A thin, clear, watery fluid that accumulates at the site of inflammation. |
Purulent Exudate | A thick, creamy, white or yellow fluid that accumulates at the site of inflammation. Also called pus. |
Suppurative Inflammation | A response to injury or infection that leads to the production of pus. |
Regeneration | Replacing damaged tissue through the process of mitosis, restoring the tissue to its original condition. |
Repair | Replacing damaged tissue with scar tissue. |
Adhesions | The binding together of two surfaces by scar tissue. |
Keloid Scarring | The over production of scar tissue that sometimes occurs in the dermis and subcutaneous layer and results in a mass of scar tissue that is often tender or painful. |
Contracture | The shortening of scar tissue over time OR the shortening of muscle tissue as a result of fibrotic changes. |
Stenosis | The narrowing of any canal or opening, such as the intestine, or a blood vessel of a heart valve. |
Sclerosis | The process of hardening. Can occur as the result of scar formation or the accumulation of deposits known as plaques. |
Necrosis | Tissue death. |
Prodromal Stage | An early stage in the development of a disease or infection that is characterized by a lack of appetite and lack of energy. The time when a person feels as if they are "coming down with something". |
Anaphylaxis | A severe, systemic, allergic response that is characterized by vasodilation (which causes a severe drop in blood pressure) and bronchoconstriction (resulting in severe difficulty in breathing). |
Immunosurveillance | The immune system's constant search for an antigen. |
Immunotolerance | The immune system's ability to recognize and not attack normally occurring tissues within the body. |
Incubation | The development of an infection from the time the infectious organism enters the body until the appearance of the first clinical signs and symptoms. |
Acute Stage | The time during an infection when clinical signs and symptoms begin to develop. |
Benign | A nonmalignant neoplasm. |
Malignant | A cancerous neoplasm. |
Angiogenesis | The development of new blood vessels, especially capillaries. |
Tumor Markers | Proteins produced by tumor cells that can be detected in screening tests of the person's blood. |
Carcinoma | A malignancy that originates in epithelial tissue. |
Sarcoma | A malignancy that originates in connective tissue. |
Glioma | A malignancy that originates within the tissue of the central nervous system. |
Carcinogenesis | The process of developing a malignant neoplasm. |
Initiators
(of cancer) | Carcinogens that increase the rate of cancer cell production by activating oncogenes. |
Promoters
(of cancer) | Carcinogens that decrease the body's ability to find and fight cancer cells by damaging tumor suppressing genes. |