Copy of `Dorland's Medical Dictionary`

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Dorland's Medical Dictionary Category: Health and Medicine > Medical Dictionary Date & country: 31/12/2010, USA Words: 39128

anaphylactoid reaction
a reaction resembling generalized anaphylaxis but not caused by an allergic reaction mediated by immunoglobulin E, but rather by a nonimmunologic mechanism.

anaphylatoxin
(an″ә-fil´ә-tok″sin) a substance produced by complement activation that causes the release of histamine and other mediators of immediate hypersensitivity from basophils and mast cells, thereby producing signs and symptoms of immediate hypersensitivity (anaphylaxis) without involvement of immunoglobulin...

anaphylaxis
(an″ә-fә-lak´sis) an unusual or exaggerated allergic reaction to an unfamiliar protein or other substance. Substances most likely to cause this include certain drugs, vaccines, and antitoxins; diagnostic agents and contrast media; protein foods; venom from insect stings; pollen; molds; and animal dande...

anaplasia
(an″ә-pla´zhә) loss of differentiation of cells and their orientation to each other, a characteristic of tumor cells; called also dedifferentiation and undifferentiation.

anaplastic
(an″ә-plas´tik) characterized by anaplasia.

anapophysis
(an″ә-pof´ĭ-sis) an accessory vertebral process.

Anaprox
(an´ә-proks) trademark for a preparation of naproxen sodium, a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug used in treatment of arthritis, acute attacks of gout and calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease, pain, dysmenorrhea, vascular headaches, and bursitis and tendinitis.

anaptic
(ә-nap´tik) pertaining to or characterized by loss of the sense of touch.

anarithmia
(an″ә-rith´me-ә) inability to count, due to a lesion of the brain.

anarthria
(an-ahr´thre-ә) severe dysarthria resulting in speechlessness.

anasarca
(an″ә-sahr´kә) generalized massive edema.

anastomosis
(ә-nas″tә-mo´sis) pl. anastomo´ses communication between two tubular organs. surgical, traumatic, or pathologic formation of a connection between two normally distinct structures. adj., anastomot´ic., adj.

anastomotic ulcer
a peptic ulcer near the site of a gastrectomy or gastroenterostomy; see also stomal ulcer.

anastrozole
(ә-nas´trә-zōl) an aromatase inhibitor used for treatment of advanced breast carcinoma in postmenopausal women; it inhibits conversion of circulating androgens into estrogens.

anat.
anatomy.

anatomic
(an″ә-tom´ik) anatomical.

anatomic dead space
the airways of the mouth, nose, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles.

anatomic pathology
the anatomical study of changes in the function, structure, or appearance of organs or tissues, including postmortem examinations and the study of biopsy specimens.

anatomical
(an″ә-tom´ĭ-kәl) pertaining to anatomy or to the structure of the organism.

anatomical neck of humerus
the constriction of the humerus just below its proximal articular surface.

anatomical position
that of the human body standing erect, palms facing forward; it is the position of reference in designating site or direction of structures of the body. The anatomical position for quadrupeds is standing with all four feet on the ground; the difference between animal and human anatomical position leads to confusion among ...

anatomical reentry
reentry in which the block to conduction is an anatomical obstacle; it is usually described by the ring model.

anatomist
(ә-nat´ә-mist) one skilled in anatomy.

anatomy
(ә-nat´ә-me) the science dealing with the form and structure of living organisms.

anatricrotic pulse
one in which the ascending limb of the tracing shows three extra small waves or notches.

anatropia
(an″ә-tro´pe-ә) upward deviation of the visual axis of one eye when the other eye is fixing. adj., anatrop´ic., adj.

anchor splint
one for fracture of the jaw, with metal loops fitting over the teeth and held together by a rod.

anchorage
(ang´kәr-әj) fixation (def. 1), especially surgical fixation of a displaced viscus. in operative dentistry, fixation of fillings, or of artificial crowns or bridges. in orthodontics, the nature and degree of resistance to displacement offered by an anatomical unit when force is applied ...

ancipital
(an-sip´ĭ-tәl) two-edged or two-headed.

anconeal
(ang-ko´ne-әl) cubital.

anconeus muscle
origin, back of lateral epicondyle of humerus; insertion, olecranon and posterior surface of ulna; innervation, radial nerve; action, extends forearm.

anconitis
(ang″ko-ni´tis) inflammation of the elbow joint.

ANCOVA
analysis of covariance.

ancrod
(an´krod) a proteinase obtained from the venom of the Malayan pit viper Agkistrodon rhodostoma, acting specifically on fibrinogen; used as an anticoagulant in the treatment of retinal vein occlusion and deep vein thrombosis and to prevent postoperative rethrombosis.

Ancylostoma
(ang″kĭ-los´tә-mә) (an″sĭ-los´tә-mә) a genus of parasitic hookworms. Ancylostoma americanum Necator americanus. Ancylostoma braziliense a species parasitic in dogs and cats in tropical and subtr...

ancylostomiasis
(an″sĭ-los″to-mi´ә-sis) hookworm disease caused by species of Ancylostoma.

Ancylostomidae
(ang″kĭ-lo-) (an″sĭ-lo-sto´mĭ-de) the hookworms, a family of nematode parasites having two ventrolateral cutting plates at the entrance to a large buccal capsule, and small teeth at its base.

ancyroid
(an´sә-roid) shaped like an anchor or hook; called also ankyroid.

Anders disease
(an´dәrs) adiposis dolorosa.

Andersen disease
(an´dәr-sәn) glycogen storage disease, type IV.

Andersen syndrome
(an´dәr-sәn) a combination of bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, and vitamin A deficiency.

Anderson phenomenon
clumps of red blood cells in the feces, seen on microscopic examination in amebic dysentery.

Andes disease
(an´dēz) chronic mountain sickness.

androblastoma
(an″dro-blas-to´mә) a rare, generally benign sex cord tumor of the ovary. More than 60 per cent are associated wi

androgen
(an´dro-jәn) any steroid hormone that promotes male secondary sex characters. The two main androgens are androsterone and testosterone. Called also androgenic hormone. adj., androgen´ic., adj.

androgen ablation therapy
androgen deprivationandrogen deprivation therapy a treatment for prostate cancer consisting of blocking production of androgens, such as by orchiectomy or administration of antiandrogens.

androgen insensitivity syndrome
complete androgen resistance.

androgen resistance
resistance of target organs to the action of androgens; the result is any of a spectrum of defects from a normal male phenotype in which men have normal reproductive organs but infertility to complete androgen resistance in which the individual has a female phenotype. Complete androgen resistance is an extreme form of male pseudoherm...

androgenesis
(an″dro-jen´ә-sis) a phenomenon in which after fertilization of an oocyte whose chromosomes are absent or inactivated, the haploid spermatozoon duplicates its own chromosomes after meiosis, so that the zygote contains only paternal chromosomes. This is often associated with complete molar pregnancies.

androgenetic alopecia
the most common type of baldness, a progressive, diffuse, symmetric loss of scalp hair in which the follicles produce finer and lighter terminal hairs until terminal hair production stops. The cause is unknown but is thought to be a combination of genetic factors and increased response of hair follicles to androgens. In m...

androgenic hormone
androgen.

androgenic zone
fetal zone of adrenal cortex.

android
(an´droid) resembling a human being.

android obesity
obesity in which fat is localized around the waist and in the upper body, seen more often in men; this type has a poorer prognosis than gynoid obesity has. Called also abdominal or visceral obesity.

android pelvis
one with a wedge-shaped inlet and narrow anterior segment typically found in the male.

andropause
(an´dro-pawz) a variable complex of symptoms, including a reduction in Leydig cell numbers and a decline in androgen production, occurring in men after middle age, purported to be analogous to menopause in women.

androstane
(an´dro-stān) the hydrocarbon nucleus, C19H32, from which androgens are derived.

androstanediol
(an″dro-stān-di´ol) (-stān´de-ol) an androgen, C19H32O2, prepared by reducing androsterone.

androstene
(an´dro-stēn) an unsaturated cyclic hydrocarbon, C19H30, forming the nucleus of testosterone and certain other androgens.

androstenediol
(an″dro-stēn-di´ol) (-stēn´de-ol) a crystalline androgenic steroid, C19H30O2.

androstenedione
(an″dro-stēn-di´ōn) (-stēn´de-ōn) an androgen, C19H30O2, less potent than testosterone, secreted by the testis, ovary, and adrenal cortex.

androsterone
(an-dros´tәr-ōn) an androgenic hormone, C19H30O2, excreted in the urine of both men and women. When injected intramuscularly, it counteracts the effects of castration.

anechoic
(an-ә-ko´ik) without echoes, such as a room used for hearing tests. sonolucent.

anectasis
(an-ek´tә-sis) congenital atelectasis due to developmental immaturity.

Anectine
(an-ek´tin) trademark for preparations of succinylcholine, a neuromuscular blocking agent.

anejaculation
(an″e-jak″u-la´shәn) failure of ejaculation of semen from the urinary meatus in sexual intercourse.

anelectrotonic zone
polar zone.

anemia
(ә-ne´me-ә) a reduction below normal in the concentration of red blood cells or hemoglobin in the blood, measured per mm3 or by volume of packed red blood cells in 100 mL of blood; it occurs when the equilibrium is disturbed between blood loss (through bleeding or destruction) and blood production.

anemia neonatorum
(ә-ne´me-ә ne″o-na-to´rәm) erythroblastosis fetalis.

anemia of chronic disease
anemia of chronic disorders mild to moderate anemia secondary to any of numerous chronic diseases lasting more than two months, such as infections, inflammatory conditions, or malignancies, characterized by hypoferremia in combination with siderosis of the reticuloendothelial system.

anemia refractoria sideroblastica
(ә-ne´me-ә re-frak-tor´e-ә sid″әr-o-blas´tĭ-kә) refractory sideroblastic anemia.

anemic
(ә-ne´mik) pertaining to anemia.

anemic hypoxia
hypoxia due to lowered oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood; this may be either from a decrease in total hemoglobin or a change in components of the hemoglobin.

anencephaly
(an″әn-sef´ә-le) congenital absence of the cranial vault, with the cerebral hemispheres completely missing or reduced to small masses. adj., anencephal´ic., adj.

anephric
(a-nef´rik) without kidneys.

anergy
(an´әr-je) lack of energy; extreme passivity. diminished reactivity to specific antigen(s). adj., aner´gic., adj.

anesthecinesia
(an-es″the-sĭ-ne´zhә) combined sensory and motor paralysis.

anesthesia
(an″es-the´zhә) lack of feeling or sensation. artificially induced loss of ability to feel pain, done to permit the performance of surgery or other painful procedures. It may be produced by a number of agents (anesthetics) capable of bringing about partial or complete loss of sensation.

anesthesiologist
(an″әs-the″ze-ol´ә-jist) one who specializes in anesthesiology.

anesthesiology
(an″әs-the″ze-ol´ә-je) the branch of medicine concerned with administration of anesthetics and the condition of the patient while under anesthesia.

anesthetic
(an″әs-thet´ik) pertaining to, characterized by, or producing anesthesia. a drug or agent used to abolish the sensation of pain, to achieve adequate muscle relaxation during surgery, to calm fear and allay anxiety, and to produce amnesia for the event. inhalational anesthet...

anesthetist
(ә-nes´thә-tist) a person trained in administering anesthetics.

anesthetization
(ә-nes″thә-tĭ-za´shәn) production of anesthesia.

anetoderma
(an″ә-to-dur´mә) a rare type of localized elastolysis producing circumscribed areas of soft, thin, wrinkled skin that often protrude as small outpouchings. It may be a primary condition or it may be secondary to some other condition involving the skin, such as syphilis, leprosy, or tuberculosis.

aneuploidy
(an´u-ploi″de) the state of having chromosomes in a number that is not an exact multiple of the haploid number. adj., an´euploid., adj.

aneurysm
(an´u-riz″әm) a sac formed by localized dilatation of the wall of an artery, a vein, or the heart; the most common site is the abdominal aorta (see abdominal aortic aneurysm). adj., aneurys´mal., adj.

aneurysm needle
a blunt-pointed, curved needle with the eye at the point; used for passing ligatures around aneurysms or vessels.

aneurysmal bone cyst
a benign, rapidly growing, osteolytic lesion, usually of childhood, characterized by blood-filled cystic spaces lined by bony or fibrous septa.

aneurysmal sac
the chamber of a sacculated aneurysm.

aneurysmectomy
(an″u-riz-mek´tә-me) surgical excision of an aneurysm.

aneurysmoplasty
(an″u-riz´mo-plas″te) plastic repair of an artery for aneurysm.

aneurysmorrhaphy
(an″u-riz-mor´ә-fe) suture closure of an aneurysm.

ANF
atrial natriuretic factor.

Angelchik prosthesis
a C-shaped silicone device used in the management of reflux esophagitis; it can also be placed around the distal esophagus during a laparotomy.

Angelman syndrome
(ān´jәl-mәn) an autosomal recessive syndrome characterized by jerky puppetlike movements, frequent laughter, mental and motor retardation, peculiar open-mouthed expression, and seizures. It can be caused by a deletion on chromosome 15 inherited from the mother; the same deletion inherited from the...

Angelucci syndrome
(ahn″jә-loo´che) excitable temperament, palpitation, and vasomotor disturbance in patients with vernal conjunctivitis.

Anghelescu sign
inability to bend the spine while lying on the back so as to rest on the head and heels alone, seen in tuberculosis of the vertebrae.

angiectasis
(an″je-ek´tә-sis) abnormal, often extreme, dilatation of a blood or lymphatic vessel. See also lymphangiectasis and vasodilation. adj., angiectat´ic., adj.

angiectomy
(an″je-ek´tә-me) surgical excision of part of a blood or lymph vessel.

angiitis
(an″je-i´tis) pl. angii´tides vasculitis. allergic granulomatous angiitis Churg-Strauss syndrome.