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

anility
(ә-nil´ĭ-te) the state of existing as or like an old woman. senility.

anima
(an´ĭ-mә) in Jung's analytic psychology, the soul or inner being of a person, as opposed to the persona, the social facade presented to the world. Because the inner and outer facades are often opposing, Jung also used the term to refer to the feminine aspect of a man's soul. See also animus.

animal
(an´ĭ-mәl) a living organism having sensation and the power of voluntary movement and requiring for its existence oxygen and organic food; animals comprise one of the five kingdoms in the most widely used classification of living organisms. any member of the animal kingdom other than a human bei...

animal bite
the biting of a human by some other animal. Potential complications include tetanus, rabies, septicemia, and bone and muscle infections.

animal viruses
viruses that produce diseases of humans and other animals.

animation
(an″ĭ-ma´shәn) the quality of being full of life. suspended animation temporary suspension or cessation of the vital functions, with loss of consciousness.

animus
(an´ĭ-mәs) in Jung's analytic psychology, the masculine aspect of a woman's soul or inner being. See also anima.

anion
(an´i-on) an ion carrying a negative charge. adj., anion´ic., adj.

anion exchange resin
see ion-exchange resin.

aniridia
(an″ĭ-rid´e-ә) congenital absence of the iris.

anisakiasis
(an″ĭ-sә-ki´ә-sis) infection with the third-stage larvae of the roundworm Anisakis marina, which burrow into the stomach wall, producing an eosinophilic granulomatous mass. Infection is acquired by eating undercooked marine fish.

Anisakis
(an″ĭ-sa´kis) a genus of nematodes that parasitize the stomachs of marine mammals and birds.

anise oil
a volatile oil distilled from the dried, ripe fruit of Pimpinella anisum(anise) or of Illicium verum (star anise); used as a flavoring agent for drugs.

aniseikonia
(an″is-i-ko´ne-ә) inequality of the retinal images of the two eyes.

anisindione
(an″is-in-di´ōn) an indanedioneanticoagulant; used when a coumarin derivative can not be used.

anismus
(ә-niz´mәs) contraction of striated muscles of the pelvic floor instead of the normal relaxation when a person strains to defecate; the result is constipation.

anisochromatic
(an-i″so-kro-mat´ik) not of the same color throughout.

anisocoria
(an-i″so-kor´e-ә) inequality in size of the pupils of the eyes.

anisocytosis
(an-i″so-si-to´sis) the presence in the blood of erythrocytes showing abnormal variations in size; see also macrocythemia and microcythemia.

anisokaryosis
(an-i″so-kar″e-o´sis) inequality in the size of the nuclei of cells.

anisomastia
(an-i″so-mas´te-ә) inequality in size of the breasts.

anisometropia
(an-i″so-mә-tro´pe-ә) a refractive error consisting of inequality in the refractive power of the two eyes, of considerable degree. adj., anisometrop´ic., adj.

anisopiesis
(an-i″so-pi-e´sis) difference in blood pressure recorded in corresponding arteries on the right and left sides of the body.

anisosthenic
(an-i″sos-then´ik) not having equal power; said of muscles.

anisotonic
(an-i″so-ton´ik) varying in tonicity or tension. having different osmotic pressure; not isotonic.

anisotropic
(an-i″so-tro´pik) having unlike properties in different directions. doubly refracting, or having a double polarizing power. in cardiac physiology, having nonuniform conduction; used to describe the nonuniform characteristics of the myocardium in the direction perpendicular to the conduc...

anisotropic reentry
reentry that is functional in not occurring around an anatomical obstacle but whose functional properties are conferred by the inherent structural anisotropy of the cardiac muscle fibers; thus it has qualities of both functional and anatomical reentry.

anisotropine
(an-i″so-tro´pēn) an anticholinergic drug that produces relaxation of visceral smooth muscle and is used as an antispasmodic in gastrointestinal disorders.

anisotropy
(an″i-sot´rә-pe) the quality of being anisotropic.

anistreplase
(an-is-trep´lās) a thrombolytic agent primarily used to clear coronary vessel occlusions associated with myocardial infarction; administered intravenously.

anisuria
(an″i-su´re-ә) alternating oliguria and polyuria.

ankle
(ang´kәl) in anatomy, the tarsus, or the region of the foot composed of seven tarsal bones and adjoining the joint between the foot and the leg (ankle joint). The bones are cushioned by cartilage and connected by a number of ligaments, tendons, and muscles that strengthen the joint and enable it to be moved. The t...

ankle block
regional anesthesia of the foot by the injection of a local anesthetic around the anterior and posterior tibial nerves at the level of the ankle.

ankle bone
talus.

ankle cuff
a weighted strip wrapped around the ankle and closed with a Velcro band; used during exercise.

ankle jerk
plantar extension of the foot elicited by a tap on the Achilles tendon, while the patient is seated on a bed or chair, with feet hanging freely; called also Achilles or Achilles tendon reflex and triceps surae jerk or reflex. Ankle jerk.

ankle joint
the joint between the leg and foot; it is a hinge joint formed by the junction of the tibia and fibula with the talus (or “ankle bone”). See also ankle.

ankle reflex
ankle jerk.

ankyloblepharon
(ang″kә-lo-blef´ә-ron) adhesion of the eyelids to each other.

ankylocheilia
(ang″kә-lo-ki´le-ә) adhesion of the lips to each other.

ankyloglossia
(ang″kә-lo-glos´e-ә) abnormal shortness of the frenulum of the tongue, resulting in limitation of its motion; called also tongue-tie. ankyloglossia superior extensive adhesion of the tongue to the palate, a condition sometimes accompanied by limb deformities.

ankylopoietic
(ang″kә-lo-poi-et´ik) producing ankylosis.

ankylosed
(ang´kә-lōzd) affected with ankylosis.

ankylosing spondylitis
a form of rheumatoid arthritis that affects the vertebral column, characterized by inflammation of the facet joints and inflammatory changes of the stabilizing ligaments of the vertebral column (enthesopathy). It affects males almost exclusively. There is stiffening of vertebral joints and ligaments, so that movement becomes increasi...

ankylosis
(ang″kә-lo´sis) pl. ankylo´ses immobility and consolidation of a joint due to disease, injury, or surgical procedure. adj., ankylot´ic., adj. Ankylosis may be caused by destruction of the membranes that line the joint or by faulty bone structure. It is most often a result of chronic rheumatoid arthri...

ankyroid
(ang´kĭ-roid) ancyroid.

anlage
(ahn-lah´gә) (an´lāj) pl. anla´gen the first beginnings of an organ or part in the developing embryo.

anneal
(ә-nēl´) to heat a material, such as glass or metal, followed by controlled cooling to remove internal stresses and induce a desired degree of toughness, temper, or softness of the material. to homogenize an amalgam alloy ingot by heating it in an oven. to heat a material, such as ...

annectent
(ә-nek´tәnt) connecting; joining together. Also spelled annectant.

annectent gyri
various small folds on the cerebral surface that are too inconstant to bear specific names; called also gyri transitivi.

Annelida
(ә-nel´ĭ-dә) a phylum of metazoan invertebrates, the segmented worms, including leeches.

annular
(an´u-lәr) ring-shaped.

annular psoriasis
a type having ring-shaped lesions with central healing.

annular scotoma
a circular area of depressed vision surrounding the point of fixation.

annular stapedial ligament
a ring of fibrous tissue that attaches the base of the stapes to the oval window of the inner ear.

annular synechia
adhesion of the whole rim of the iris to the lens.

annuloplasty
(an´u-lo-plas″te) plastic repair of a cardiac valve by shortening the circumference of its annulus.

annulus
(an´u-lәs) pl. an´nuli alternate spelling of anulus.

anococcygeal
(a″no-kok-sij´e-әl) pertaining to the anus and coccyx.

anococcygeal ligament
a fibrous band connecting the posterior fibers of the sphincter of the anus to the coccyx.

anococcygeal nerve
origin, coccygeal plexus; distribution, sacrococcygeal joint, coccyx, skin over the coccyx; modality, general sensory.

anocutaneous line
the sinuous line marking the outer end of the anal pecten, the junction where the anal canal lined with stratified squamous epithelium ends and typical external skin begins. Called also anal verge and dentate line.

anodal block
a conduction block resulting from hyperpolarization of the nerve cell membrane by an electric stimulus.

anode
(an´ōd) the electrode at which oxidation occurs and to which anions are attracted. adj., ano´dal., adj.

anodontia
(an″o-don´shә) congenital absence of some or all of the teeth; called also edentia.

anodyne
(an´o-dīn) relieving pain. a medicine that eases pain.

anomalad
(ә-nom´ә-lad) sequence (def. 2).

anomaloscope
(ә-nom´ә-lo-skōp″) an apparatus used to detect anomalies of color vision.

anomalous trichromatic vision
color vision deficiency in which a person has all three cone pigments but one is deficient or abnormal. It may be an inherited disorder, caused by a recessive gene on the X chromosome, or it may be the result of another disorder, such as disease of the retina.

anomaly
(ә-nom´ә-le) marked deviation from normal. adj., anom´alous., adj. congenital anomaly a developmental anomaly present at birth. May-Hegglin anomaly a rare dominantly inherited disorder of blood cell morphology, characterized by RNA-cont...

anomia
(ә-no´me-ә) loss of the ability to name objects or recognize names.

anomic aphasia
inability to name objects, qualities, or conditions. Called also amnestic or nominal aphasia.

anonychia
(an″o-nik´e-ә) absence of the nail(s).

Anopheles
(ә-nof´ә-lēz) a widely distributed genus of mosquitoes, comprising over 300 species, many of which are important vectors of malaria .

anophthalmia
(an″of-thal´me-ә) a developmental anomaly consisting of complete absence of the eyes or presence of only rudimentary eyes.

anophthalmos
(an″of-thal´mos) anophthalmia.

anoplasty
(a´no-plas″te) plastic repair of the anus.

anorchid
(an-or´kid) lacking testes.

anorchidism
(an-or´kĭ-diz″әm) anorchism.

anorchism
(an-or´kiz-әm) congenital absence of one or both testes.

anorectic
(an″o-rek´tik) pertaining to anorexia. without appetite. an agent that diminishes or suppresses the appetite for food. Most of the drugs used for this purpose are central nervous system stimulants (the amphetamines and similar sympathomimetic amines). These drugs should not be used in a...

anorectoperineal muscles
bands of smooth muscle fibers extending from the perineal flexure of the rectum to the membranous urethra in the male.

anorectum
(a″no-rek´tәm) the distal portion of the digestive tract, including the entire anal canal and the distal 2 cm of the rectum. adj., anorec´tal., adj.

anorexia
(an″o-rek´se-ә) lack or loss of appetite; appetite is psychological, dependent on memory and associations, as compared with hunger, which is physiologically aroused by the body's need for food. Anorexia can be brought about by subjectively unpleasant food, surroundings, or company, or emotional states such a...

anorexia nervosa
(an″o-rek´se-ә nәr-vo´sә) an eating disorder consisting of loss of appetite due to an emotional state such as anxiety, irritation, anger, or fear. In true anorexia nervosa there is no real loss of appetite, but rather a refusal to eat or an aberration in eating patterns, so that the term anorexia...

anorexia-cachexia
anorexia-cachexia syndrome.

anorexia-cachexia syndrome
a systemic response to conditions such as cancer or the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, resulting from a poorly understood relationship between anorexia and cachexia, manifested by malnutrition, weight loss, muscular weakness, acidosis, and toxemia. The anorexia may be caused by a severe metabolic disturbance that contribut...

anorexic
(an″o-rek´sik) anorectic.

anorexigenic
(an″o-rek″sĭ-jen´ik) producing anorexia. anorectic (def. 3).

anormalization
(a-nor″mәl-ĭ-za´shәn) the possessing of expectations that differ from those originally anticipated.

anorthography
(an″or-thog´rә-fe) loss of the ability to write.

anorthopia
(an″or-tho´pe-ә) distorted vision in which straight lines appear as curves or angles, and symmetry is incorrectly perceived. strabismus.

anoscope
(a´nә-skōp) a speculum or endoscope used in direct visual examination of the anal canal.

anoscopy
(a-nos´kә-pe) examination of the anal canal with an anoscope.

anosigmoidoscopy
(a″no-sig″moi-dos´kә-pe) endoscopic examination of the anus and the sigmoid colon.

anosmia
(an-oz´me-ә) absence of the sense of smell. adj., anosmat´ic, anos´mic., adj.

anosmic
(an-oz´mik) having no sense of smell. odorless.

anosognosia
(an-o″sog-no´zhә) unawareness or denial of a neurological deficit, such as hemiplegia.

anospinal
(a″no-spi´nәl) pertaining to the anus and spinal cord.

anostosis
(an″os-to´sis) defective formation of bone.