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

posterior median fissure
a shallow vertical groove in the closed part of the medulla oblongata, continuous with the posterior median fissure of the spinal cord. a shallow vertical groove dividing the spinal cord throughout its length in the midline posteriorly; called also posterior median sulcus.

posterior median sulcus
posterior median fissure.

posterior meningeal artery
origin, ascending pharyngeal artery; branches, none; distribution, bones and dura mater of posterior cranial fossa.

posterior parietal artery
origin, superior terminal branch of middle cerebral artery; branches, none; distribution, posterior parietal lobe.

posterior radicular artery
one of the spinal branches of the dorsal branch of a posterior intercostal artery; it is the branch supplying the posterior root of a particular spinal nerve.

posterior root of spinal nerve
the posterior, or sensory, division of each spinal nerve, attached centrally to the spinal cord and joining peripherally with the anterior root to form the nerve before it emerges from the intervertebral foramen; each posterior root bears a spinal ganglion that conveys sensory fibers to the spinal cord. See illustration a...

posterior sacral foramina
eight passages (four on each side) on the dorsal surface of the sacrum for the posterior branches of the sacral nerves.

posterior scalene muscle
origin, posterior tubercles of transverse processes of fourth to sixth cervical vertebrae; insertion, second rib; innervation, sixth to eighth cervical nerves; action, raises second rib, flexes cervical vertebrae laterally.

posterior scrotal nerves
origin, perineal nerves; distribution, skin of scrotum; modality, general sensory.

posterior scrotal veins
small venous branches from the posterior part of the scrotum that open into the vesical venous plexus. They are the counterparts of the posterior labial veins in the female.

posterior segmental vein
a vein draining the posterior segment of the superior lobe of the right lung and emptying into the right superior pulmonary vein.

posterior septal arteries
interventricular septal branches of right coronary artery: numerous relatively small branches of the posterior interventricular branch of the right coronary artery that supply about the posterior one-third of the interventricular septum.

posterior spinal artery
origin,posterior inferior cerebellar artery (usually) or vertebral artery; branches, none; distribution, posterior region of spinal cord.

posterior spinal veins
a group of longitudinal, usually discontinuous, veins (one median and two posterolateral) forming a plexus on the posterior surface of the spinal cord; they drain the posterior spinal cord.

posterior spinocerebellar tract
a group of nerve fibers in the lateral funiculus of the spinal cord, arising mostly from the nucleus thoracicus, and ascending to the cerebellum through the inferior cerebellar peduncle.

posterior superior alveolar artery
origin,maxillary artery; branches, dental and peridental branches; distribution, molar and premolar regions of upper jaw, maxillary sinus.

posterior supraclavicular nerves
lateral supraclavicular nerves.

posterior synechia
adhesion of the iris to the capsule of the lens or to the surface of the vitreous body.

posterior teeth
the teeth in the back part of the dental arches; the premolar and molar teeth.

posterior temporal artery
the posterior temporal branch of the middle cerebral artery, arising from the inferior terminal branch of the middle cerebral artery and supplying the lateral surface of the posterior temporal lobe.

posterior temporal diploic vein
a vein that drains the parietal bone and empties into the transverse sinus.

posterior tibial artery
origin, popliteal artery; branches, fibular circumflex branch, peroneal, medial plantar, and lateral plantar arteries; distribution, leg, foot.

posterior tibial pulse
a pulse felt over the posterior tibial artery just behind the ankle bone on the inner side of the ankle.

posterior tibial recurrent artery
origin, anterior tibial artery; branches, none; distribution, knee.

posterior tibial veins
veins following the course of the posterior tibial artery, which unite with the anterior tibial veins to form the popliteal vein.

posterior tympanic artery
origin, stylomastoid artery; branches, none; distribution, tympanic cavity.

posterior urethral valve
any of various types of congenital folds across the proximal part of the male urethra near the seminal colliculus, the most common cause of urethral obstruction in male infants.

posterior vaginal hernia
downward protrusion of the Douglas pouch, with its intestinal contents, between the posterior vaginal wall and the rectum. Called also enterocele. enterocele (def. 2).

posterior vein of corpus callosum
a vein that drains the posterior surface of the corpus callosum into the great cerebral vein.

posterior vein of left ventricle
the vein that drains blood from the posterior surface of the left ventricle into the coronary sinus.

posterior vein of septum pellucidum
a vein that drains the posterior septum pellucidum into the superior thalamostriate vein.

posteroanterior
(pos″tәr-o-an-tēr´e-әr) directed from the back toward the front; called also dorsoventral.

posteroexternal
(pos″tәr-o-ek-stur´nәl) situated on the outside of a posterior aspect.

posteroinferior
(pos″tәr-o-in-fēr´e-әr) behind and below.

posterolateral
(pos″tәr-o-lat´әr-әl) situated on the side and toward the posterior aspect.

posterolateral central arteries
origin, posterior cerebral artery; branches, none; distribution, cerebral peduncle, posterior thalamus, colliculi, medial geniculate and pineal bodies. The group includes the thalamogeniculate artery and the peduncular and posterior medial and lateral choroidal branches.

posterolateral fontanelle
mastoid fontanelle.

posteromedial
(pos″tәr-o-me´de-әl) situated toward the middle of the posterior (back) surface.

posteromedian
(pos″tәr-o-me´de-әn) situated on the middle of a posterior aspect.

posterosuperior
(pos″tәr-o-soo-pēr´e-әr) situated behind and above.

postfibrinous fibrosis
that occurring in tissues in which fibrin has been deposited.

postganglionic
(pōst″gang-gle-on´ik) distal to a ganglion.

postganglionic fibers
nerve fibers that pass to involuntary muscle and gland cells and have their cell bodies in the autonomic ganglia.

postganglionic neurons
neurons whose cell bodies lie in the autonomic ganglia and whose purpose is to relay impulses beyond the ganglia.

postgastrectomy syndrome
dumping syndrome.

postglomerular arteriole
efferent glomerular arteriole.

posthemiplegic paralysis
residual weakness after a stroke.

posthemorrhagic anemia of newborn
anemia of the newborn due to hemorrhage, such as into the placenta or from umbilical vessels; it may range from mild to severe.

posthepatitic cirrhosis
a type that is a sequel to acute hepatitis; it is usually a form of macronodular cirrhosis.

postherpetic neuralgia
persistent burning pain and tingling along the distribution of a cutaneous nerve following an attack of herpes zoster.

posthioplasty
(pos´the-o-plas″te) plastic repair of the prepuce.

posthitis
(pos-thi´tis) inflammation of the prepuce.

posthypnotic
(pōst″hip-not´ik) following the hypnotic state.

postictal
(pōst-ik´tәl) following a seizure.

posticus paralysis
paralysis of the posterior cricothyroid muscle. See also laryngeal paralysis.

postinfarction pericarditis
acute pericarditis that develops within one week after myocardial infarction, with pericardial pain, dyspnea, and a pericardial rub.

postinfectious encephalitis
postvaccinal encephalitis acute disseminated encephalomyelitis.

postinfectious encephalomyelitis
postvaccinal encephalomyelitis acute disseminated encephalomyelitis.

postinflammatory cataract
a secondary cataract due to inflammation.

postirradiation pericarditis
acute or chronic pericarditis resulting from high dose radiotherapy, often beginning as exudative effusion with fibrin deposits and sometimes progressing to chronic pericardial effusion or constrictive pericarditis; in some persons this does not develop until decades after the radiation exposure.

postirradiation syndrome
a symptom complex caused by massive irradiation, with hemorrhage, anemia, and malnutrition. See also acute radiation syndrome.

postlingual hearing loss
that acquired after the person has learned to speak.

postmature infant
one with postmaturity syndrome. postterm infant.

postmaturity
(pōst″mә-chldbomacr´ĭ-te) overdevelopment; the condition of a postmature infant. adj., postmature´., adj. .

postmaturity syndrome
a syndrome due to placental insufficiency that causes chronic stress and hypoxia, seen in fetuses and newborn infants in postterm pregnancies and characterized by decreased subcutaneous fat, skin desquamation, and long fingernails, often with yellow meconium staining of the nails, skin, and vernix. Called also dysmaturity...

postmenopausal
(pōst″men-o-paw´zәl) after the menopause.

postmenopausal atrophy
atrophy of tissues such as the genital mucosa after menopause.

postmenopausal osteoporosis
that occurring in women within 3 to 20 years after menopause, affecting trabecular bone more than cortical bone; the most common symptoms are vertebral fractures of the painful crush type, hip fracture, Colles fracture, and increased tooth loss.

postmitotic
(pōst″mi-tot´ik) occurring after or pertaining to the time following mitosis.

postmortem
(pōst-mor´tәm) performed or occurring after death.

postnatal
(pōst-na´tәl) occurring after birth, with reference to the newborn.

postnecrotic cirrhosis
macronodular cirrhosis.

postneonatal death rate
postneonatal mortality rate the ratio of the number of deaths in a given year of children between the 28th day of life and the first birthday relative to the difference between the number of the live births and neonatal deaths in that year; the denominator is sometimes simplified, less correctly, to the number of live birt...

postoperative
(pōst-op´әr-ә-tive) after a surgical operation.

postoperative care
care of the patient following a surgical procedure. Immediately after surgery, the patient usually is transferred to a postanesthesia care unit, a special unit designed to facilitate management of the patient recovering from anesthesia and staffed with personnel experienced in this.

postpartum
(pōst-pahr´tәm) occurring after childbirth, with reference to the mother.

postpartum depression
moderate to severe depression beginning slowly and sometimes undetectably during the second to third week post partum, increasing steadily for weeks to months and usually resolving spontaneously within a year. Somatic complaints such as fatigue are common. It is intermediate in severity between the mood fluctuations exper...

postpartum hemorrhage
hemorrhage that follows soon after childbirth.

postpartum pituitary necrosis
necrosis of the pituitary during the postpartum period, resulting from an infarct; it is often associated with shock and excessive uterine bleeding during delivery, and leads to variable patterns of hypopituitarism. Called also Sheehan syndrome.

postpartum psychosis
a psychotic episode in a woman who has recently given birth.

postperfusion syndrome
a type of cytomegalovirus mononucleosis sometimes seen about 3 to 6 weeks after extracorporeal circulation or multiple blood transfusions.

postpericardiotomy syndrome
(pōst-per″e-kahr″de-ot´ә-me) a type of post–cardiac injury syndrome with fever, chest pains, and signs of pleural or pericardial inflammation, following pericardiotomy. Called also postcardiotomy syndrome and postcommissurotomy syndrome.

postphlebitic syndrome
(pōst-flĕ-bit´ik) a form of chronic venous stasis that follows an episode of phlebitis, owing to incompetent valves or occlusion in the veins. The patient usually experiences edema, lower limb discoloration, and pain. The most serious sequela of this condition is a stasis ulcer; poor circulation to the area ma...

postpolio syndrome
(pōst-po´le-o) postpoliomyelitis syndrome.

postpoliomyelitis syndrome
(pōst-po″le-o-mi-ĕ-li´tis) a group of symptoms of unknown etiology seen in patients several years to many years after they have recovered from the major illness of poliomyelitis; it includes new weakness, fatigue, and pain, either generalized or limited to the parts that were affected by the poliomyeliti...

postprandial
(pōst-pran´de-әl) after a meal; called also postcibal.

postprimary tuberculosis
pulmonary tuberculosis that looks like a fresh infection but is actually the reappearance of an earlier attack that may have been subclinical. It is distinguished by caseation and cavitation with healing that results in fibrosis. Called also reactivation or secondary tuberculosis.

postpuberal
(pōst-pu´bәr-әl) postpubertal.

postpubertal
(pōst-pu´bәr-tәl) occurring in or pertaining to the period following puberty.

postpubescent
(pōst″pu-bes´әnt) after puberty.

postpump syndrome
a series of complications occasionally seen in patients after heart surgery that involved cardiopulmonary bypass, with pulmonary edema and other signs of acute respiratory distress syndrome and damage to kidneys, brain, and other organs that can be fatal.

postrenal
(pōst-re´nәl) located behind a kidney. occurring after leaving a kidney, such as renal failure that results from processes impairing normal excretion of urine after it has been formed. See also prerenal.

postsinusoidal
(pōst″si-nә-soi´dәl) located beyond a sinusoid or affecting the circulation beyond a sinusoid; used especially to denote the location of vascular resistance in portal hypertension.

poststenotic
(pōst″stә-not´ik) located or occurring distal to or beyond a stenosed segment.

postsynaptic
(pōst″sĭ-nap´tik) distal to or occurring beyond a synapse.

postterm infant
an infant born at or after the forty-second completed week (294 days) of gestation.

postthrombotic syndrome
postphlebitic syndrome.

posttransfusion syndrome
former name for postperfusion syndrome.

posttraumatic
(pōst″traw-mat´ik) following injury.

posttraumatic amnesia
amnesia resulting from concussion or other head trauma. Called also traumatic amnesia. See also amnestic syndrome.