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Superglossary - Health Category: Health and Medicine > Disease Date & country: 18/12/2013, USA Words: 309

Endogenous Retrovirus
Integrated retroviruses derived from infection of the germline (egg or sperm) of an ancestral organi

Environmental Media
Soil, water, air, biota (plants and animals), or any other parts of the environment that can contain

Epidemic
The occurrence in an area of a disease or illness in excess of what may be expected on the basis of

Epidemic Curve
A histogram that describes an outbreak of disease by plotting the number of cases of a disease by da

Epidemiology
The branch of medicine that deals with the study of the causes, distribution, and control of disease

Epidemiology
The study of the distribution and determinants of disease or health status in a population; the stud

Epilepsy
A disorder of the nervous system, characterized either by mild, episodic loss of attention or sleepi

Epizootic
The term used for an epidemic that occurs within an animal population.

Eukarytote
An organism whose cells contain a true nucleus, such as a plants, animals, fungi and protozoa (cf pr

Evolution
A change in the inherited traits of a population from one generation to the next.

Exposure
Contact with a substance by swallowing, breathing, or touching the skin or eyes. Exposure may be sho

Exposure Assessment
The process of finding out how people come into contact with a hazardous substance, how often and fo

Exposure Investigation
The collection and analysis of site-specific information and biologic tests (when appropriate) to de

Exposure Pathway
The route a substance takes from its source (where it began) to its end point (where it ends), and h

Exposure Registry
A system of ongoing followup of people who have had documented environmental exposures.

Exposure-Dose Reconstruction
A method of estimating the amount of people's past exposure to hazardous substances. Computer and ap

Feasibility Study
A study by EPA to determine the best way to clean up environmental contamination. A number of factor

Filovirus
A family of RNA viruses that target primates. There are two genera

Fomite
An inanimate object capable of carrying infectious organisms and hence transferring them from one in

Gangrene
Death and decay of tissue in a part of the body--usually a limb--due to injury, disease, or failure

Gas Gangrene
A very unpleasant way to die. Gas gangrene is a deadly bacterial infection usually caused by Clostri

Gene
A unit of heredity. (Or a locatable region of genomic sequence, corresponding to a unit of inheritan

Genotype
A description of the genetic constitution of an individual.

Geographic Information System (GIS)
A mapping system that uses computers to collect, store, manipulate, analyze, and display data. For e

Germ Theory
The theory that microorganisms are the cause of many diseases. Highly controversial when first propo

Golden Age Of Microbiology
(dates vary ~ 1850-1890) A period of tremendous advances in microbiology with consequences for epide

Grand Rounds
Training sessions for physicians and other health care providers about health topics.

Gravel
A disease characterized by small stones which are formed in the kidneys, passed along the ureters to

Great Stink
(1858) The Great Stink or The Big Stink was a time in the summer of 1858 during which the smell of u

Groundwater
Water beneath the earth's surface in the spaces between soil particles and between rock surfaces [co

Half-Life
The time it takes for half the original amount of a substance to disappear. In the environment, the

Hantavirus
The virus causative agent of Hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome. A zoontic disease with a reservoi

Hantavirus Cardiopulmonary Syndrome
A deadly disease transmitted to humans by infected rodents through urine, droppings, or saliva. Huma

Hazard
A source of potential harm from past, current, or future exposures.

Hazardous Waste
Potentially harmful substances that have been released or discarded into the environment.

Health Consultation
A review of available information or collection of new data to respond to a specific health question

Health Education
Programs designed with a community to help it know about health risks and how to reduce these risks.

Health Investigation
The collection and evaluation of information about the health of community residents. This informati

Health Promotion
The process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health.

Health Statistics Review
The analysis of existing health information (i.e., from death certificates, birth defects registries

Hectic Fever
A daily recurring fever with profound sweating, chills, and flushed appearance-- often associated wi

Hemagglutinin
One of the enzymes found on the surface of the Influenza virus. It is responsible for binding the vi

Hemorrhagic Fever
The viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) are a diverse group of animal and human illnesses that are cause

Herd Immunity
A type of community protection from disease that occurs when the vaccination of a portion of the pop

Hives
A skin eruption of smooth, slightly elevated areas on the skin which is redder or paler than the sur

Horizontal Transmission
Transmission of an infection between members of the same species that are not in a parent-child rela

Hospital Acquired Infection
Nosocomial infections are infections which are a result of treatment in a hospital or a healthcare s

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
The causative agent of AIDS. There are two main strains known as HIV-1 and HIV-2, and a large number

Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
A diverse group of viruses that infect the skin and mucous membranes of humans and a variety of anim

Iatrogenic
Disease (often infection) caused as a result of medical procedures such as surgery, catheterization

Immunity
Having sufficient biological defenses to avoid a specific disease.

Immunization
The process of rendering an individual protected (immune) against a certain disease. Vaccination is

Immunocompromised
Individuals whose immune system is weakened by any of a number of factors including disease (eg AIDS

In Vitro
In an artificial environment outside a living organism or body. For example, some toxicity testing i

In Vivo
Within a living organism or body. For example, some toxicity testing is done on whole animals, such

Inanition
Exhaustion from lack of nourishment; starvation.

Incidence
The number of new cases of a disease occurring in a given population over a certain period of time.

Incidence
The number of new cases of disease in a defined population over a specific time period [contrast wit

Incubation Period
The incubation period is the amount of time between infection with a virus or bacteria to the start

Indeterminate Public Health Hazard
The category used in ATSDR's public health assessment documents when a professional judgment about t

Index Case
The index case is the first disease case in an epidemic. Sometimes called

Infected Category
Individuals in the SIR model who are infected by the disease and are capable of infecting other indi

Infection
In the early part of the last century, infections were thought to be the propagation of disease by e

Inflammation
Redness, swelling, pain, tenderness, heat, and disturbed function of an area of the body. In the las

Ingestion
The act of swallowing something through eating, drinking, or mouthing objects. A hazardous substance

Inhalation
The act of breathing. A hazardous substance can enter the body this way [see route of exposure].

Intermediate Duration Exposure
Contact with a substance that occurs for more than 14 days and less than a year [compare with acute

Intermittent Epidemic
An intermittent epidemic occurs when a group of people is exposed to a single common source of infec

Jaundice
Yellow discoloration of the skin, whites of the eyes, and mucous membranes, due to an increase of bi

Kings Evil
A popular name for scrofula. The name originated in the time of Edward the Confessor, with the belie

Koch�s Postulates
Four criteria proposed by Robert Koch and designed to establish a causal relationship between a caus

Lockjaw
Tetanus, a disease in which the jaws become firmly locked together

Lyme Disease
A zoonotic disease vectored by ticks. Small mammals are the main reservoir species.

Malaria
A disease caused by a number of species of the protozoan Plasmodium. It is vectored by mosquitoes, w

Marasmus
Malnutrition occurring in infants and young children, caused by an insufficient intake of calories o

Marburg Virus
The causative agent of Marburg haemorrhagic fever. The virus is closely related to Ebola and origina

MDR-TB
Multi-drug resistant Tuberculosis

Measles
A viral disease of humans easily transmitted via the respiratory route. Prior to the introduction of

Medical Monitoring
A set of medical tests and physical exams specifically designed to evaluate whether an individual's

Meningitis
Inflammation of the meninges characterized by high fever, severe headache, and stiff neck or back mu

Merozoite
A stage in the life cycle of the Plasmodium parasite, causative agent of malaria. Initially produce

Metabolism
The conversion or breakdown of a substance from one form to another by a living organism.

Miasma Theory
The theory that diseases were caused by miasma or bad air arising from organic decay, filth, or othe

Milk Sick
poisoning resulting from the drinking of milk produced by a cow who had eaten a plant known as white

Minimal Risk Level (MRL)
An ATSDR estimate of daily human exposure to a hazardous substance at or below which that substance

Mixed Epidemiuc
A mixed epidemic occurs when a group of people is exposed when a group of people is exposed to a sin

MMR Vaccine
A mixture of live but attenuated viruses, administered for immunization against measles, mumps and r

Morbidity
State of being ill or diseased. Morbidity is the occurrence of a disease or condition that alters he

Mortality
Death. The morbidity and mortality rates for a disease convey two different, and important, pieces o

MRSA
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). It has evolved an ability to survive treatment w

Mumps
A viral disease of humans. Prior to the introduction of a vaccine, it was a common childhood disease

Mutagen
A substance that causes mutations (genetic damage).

Mutant Swarm
(aka viral swarm) A group of viruses of the same species but with slightly different genetic sequenc

Mutation
A change (damage) to the DNA, genes, or chromosomes of living organisms.

Mutation Rate
The chance of a mutation occurring in an organism or gene in each cell division.

Mycobacterium Bovis
The slow-growing bacterium that is the causative agent of tuberculosis in cattle (known as bovine TB

Mycobacterium Tuberculosis
The slow-growing bacterium that is the causative agent of tuberculosis in humans.

National Toxicology Program (NTP)
Part of the Department of Health and Human Services. NTP develops and carries out tests to predict w

Neuralgia
Sharp and paroxysmal pain along the course of a sensory nerve.

Neuraminidase
One of the enzymes found on the surface of the Influenza virus. It promotes the release of progeny v