Glossary of Medical Terms

Following is a list of terms used on this web site and their meanings. Click on a letter to jump down to terms beginning with that letter.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V

A

Anemia A common condition in which there aren't enough healthy red blood cells to carry adequate oxygen to body tissues.
Anesthesia Medications that prevent pain during a procedure. They may be injected, inhaled or administered intravenously. Anesthesia may be used on a specific area or on the entire body. Some types of anesthesia cause unconsciousness and are often referred to as general anesthesia.
Anesthetic A substance used to block the perception of pain or other sensations.
Aneurysm An abnormal ballooning of a blood vessel, usually an artery. Aneurysms may rupture and potentially cause serious damage to surrounding tissue.
Angina Chest pain caused by an inadequate supply of oxygen to the heart muscle.
Angiomyolipoma A benign kidney tumor.
Anorexia Nervosa A serious eating disorder characterized by voluntary starvation. Anorexia Nervosa, which has physiological, psychological, and sociological components, primarily affects young women.
Anticoagulation / Anticoagulants Medications that prevent blood from clotting.
Anticonvulsants A group of medications used to prevent seizures, such as epileptic seizures.
Arteries Strong, elastic blood vessels that carry nutrient- and oxygen-rich blood from the heart to body organs and tissues.
Asymptomatic Not causing any symptoms or side effects.
Atherosclerosis A disease of the blood vessels where plaque adheres to the inner walls of the blood vessel. The blood vessel opening narrows and restricts blood flow.

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B

Barium A liquid containing barium sulfate that is used for some x-rays (i.e. barium enema) to make certain body parts more visible in the x-ray images.
Benign Not cancerous.

C

Capillaries Small blood vessels that connect arteries to veins. Oxygen and nutrients are exchanged with cellular waste products in the capillaries.
Carotid artery A major artery that carries blood from the heart to the head. There are two carotid arteries; one on the left and one on the right of the front side of the neck.
Catheter In interventional radiology, a very narrow tube that is guided through the veins to treat various conditions (e.g. remove blood clots, insert stent grafts) without surgery.
Cauterize To destroy body tissue with heat or acid. This process is used to stop bleeding and remove small tumors.
Cerebrum The enlarged, upper section of the brain that controls conscious mental processes.
Chemotherapy Drugs that damage cancer cells, often preventing the cells from dividing.
Chronic Lasting for a long time.
Circulation The flow of blood through the arteries, capillaries and veins.
Cirrhosis An irreversible, chronic liver disease where normal liver tissue is replaced by connective tissue, resulting in impaired liver function.
Claustrophobic To have a fear of enclosed or confined spaces.
Coagulation The process by which the blood clots.
Compression fracture A fracture caused by bone being pressed together. Compression fractures in the vertebrae are a common symptom of osteoporosis.
Congenital Present at birth.
Connective tissue Tissue that supports and surrounds organs and other tissue, including cartilage, collagen, ligament, tendons, fat, and blood.
Conscious sedation Medication that is administered intravenously to relieve pain and anxiety during a medical procedure. The patient remains awake, but calm. These medications may prevent the patient from remembering the procedure.
Contraindication A factor that increases risk and makes a procedure or course of action inadvisable.
Contrast (agent, medium, or material) A dye or substance used in various imaging exams to make body parts more visible. It may be administered intravenously, orally or rectally.
Coronary Related to the heart.

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D

Diagnosis A conclusion about the state of a person's health based on symptoms and exam results.
Diagnostic Something, such as exam, that is intended to identify a problem.
Dilated Expanded or enlarged.
Diverticulitis A condition that develops when an outpocket caused by diverticulosis becomes inflamed an potentially infected.
Diverticulosis An intestinal disorder where hollow or fluid filled outpockets form on the colon wall.

E

Embolization Purposefully inserting a material into a blood vessel to block it.
Endovascular Within the blood vessels.
Endovenous Within the veins.
Estrogen A female hormone primarily produced by the ovaries.

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F

Femoral artery A large artery that begins in the lower abdomen and extends through the thigh.
Fertility The ability to conceive and have children through normal sexual activity.
Fluoroscope A machine that takes continuous real-time x-rays. It is used during many interventional radiology procedures to allow the radiologist to see the movement of instruments within the body. It is also used during pain management procedures and barium upper gastrointestinal or barium enema studies.

G

Gadolinium A contrast agent sometimes intravenously administered during MRI exams to increase the visibility of body tissue in the MRI images.
Gastrointestinal Pertaining to the digestive system, including the stomach, small intestines and large intestines (colon).
Gland An organ that creates a substance, such as hormones, to be released into the bloodstream, a body cavity, or onto the skin.
Glomerulonephritis An autoimmune disease of the kidneys.

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H

Hemorrhage Bleeding, usually internally.
Hypertension Abnormally high blood pressure.
Hysterectomy Surgery to remove the uterus and, sometimes, the ovaries.

I

Imaging guidance Use of an imaging technology, such as CT, MRI, fluoroscopy, or ultrasound, to accurately move instruments to a specific location inside the body.
Incision A cut in the skin.
Infarct Tissue death caused by a lack of blood flow to the tissue.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease A group of conditions that cause swelling and inflammation in the intestines. Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are the two main types of inflammatory bowel disease; however, they are very different diseases.
Interventional Pertaining to the act of modifying a situation with the intent of improving the outcome.
Intravenously Entering through a vein.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome A bowel disorder that may cause abdominal pain and discomfort associated with changes in bowel habits without any structural cause. This disorder is also referred to as IBS and spastic colon.

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J

Jaundice A yellowing of the skin, whites of the eyes, and mucus membranes due to an increased level of bile pigment in the system.

K

Kegel exercises An exercise performed by women that involves repetitive contractions of the pubococcygeal muscles (those used to stop the flow of urine). Kegel exercises may prevent some types of urinary incontinence.
Klinefelters Syndrome A male condition caused by having two X chromosomes in addition to the Y chromosome. About 1 in 1000 men have the extra X chromosome, but fewer experience symptoms because of it. Symptoms include enlarged breasts, rounded body type with abnormal proportions, sparse body and facial hair, and the inability to produce sperm.

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L

Lesion Almost any abnormality in any organ or tissue caused by disease, infection, or injury.
Lumen The hole in the artery through which blood flows.
Lupus An autoimmune disorder where the body's immune system attacks its own tissue.
Lymphoma Cancer in the lymph nodes or glands.

M

Malignant Cancerous.
Metabolism A range of biochemical processes that continually occur at the cellular level to build up and break down compounds in the body. Metabolism is often used to refer to the breakdown of food to use as energy.
Metastasize When cancer spreads from its original location to other parts of the body.
Microscopic Too small to be seen by the unaided human eye.
Minimally-invasive Causing the least of damage possible to the body while treating a particular condition.

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N

Narcotic A substance that is used medically to dull pain and/or induce sleep.
Nephrotic syndrome A disorder where damaged kidneys leak protein into the urine.
Nidus An abnormal network of blood vessels that improperly connects arteries directly to veins.
Nodule A small, solid collection of tissue that is usually benign but may interfere with the normal functioning of the organ.

O

Occlusion The state of being closed when normally open, as with an artery.
Oncocytoma A benign, solid tumor.
Organ A group of tissues that perform one or specialized functions. Examples of organs include eyes, lungs, heart, liver, and skin.
Oxalates A type of salt crystals.

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P

Pathologist A doctor who identifies a disease by studying tissue samples in a laboratory.
Plaque A deposit of fatty material, of which cholesterol is a key component, on the wall of an artery ; characteristic of atherosclerosis.
Polyp Extra tissue that grows on the inside wall of a hollow organ, such as the colon. Polyps may be cancerous or non-cancerous.
Predispose To make susceptible.
Primary cancer Cancer that is located in the organ or tissue where the cancer began.
Prognosis A doctor's prediction, based on medical evidence, of how a patient's condition will progress and the likelihood of recovery.
Pulmonary Pertaining to the lungs.

R

Radiologist A physician who specializes in using imaging techniques (e.g. x-rays, CT scans, ultrasound) to diagnose and treat disease.
Renal Pertaining to the kidneys.
Rupture Tear or burst open

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S

Secondary cancer Cancer that has spread from its original site to another part of the body. For example, if cancer has spread from the liver to the colon, the cancer in the colon is secondary cancer.
Sedentary Requiring or including a lot of sitting.
Sickle Cell Anemia A genetic disease that primary occurs in people of African descent. Red blood cells change shape and lodge in the capillaries, obstructing blood flow to downstream tissue. This disease usually occurs in painful attacks and can cause serious damage to organs.
Sonographer A medical technician training in performing ultrasound exams.
Sonography Ultrasound
Stenosis The abnormal narrowing of a bodily passage or opening, such as a blood vessel.
Stent An expandable tube that is placed within a vessel to keep it open.
Steroid A natural or synthetic compound with a specific carbon structure. Steroids have many functions; however, their most important role is as hormones.
Symptomatic Causing symptoms or side effects.

T

Testosterone A principally male hormone that is primarily produced by the testes. Testosterone is also produced in females in smaller quantities by other tissue.
Therapeutic Intended to treat a disorder or disease.
Tracer (radioactive) A substance containing a radioactive isotope that is used in nuclear medicine to evaluate chemical processes in the body.
Transducer An instrument that transmits and receives sound waves during an ultrasound exam. Transducers are generally pressed against the skin; however, special transducers may be used in the vagina and rectum.
Transitional cell carcinoma A type of cancer that develops in the lining of the ureter, bladder, or renal pelvis (area in the center of the kidney).
Tuberculosis A bacterial infection that most commonly affects the lungs. Tuberculosis is also referred to as TB.

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U

Ureter A tube that carries urine from the kidney to the bladder.
Urethra A tube that takes urine outside the body from the bladder.

V

Vasculature The network of blood vessels in an organ or body part.
Veins Blood vessels that carry waste-laden blood from body organs and tissues to the heart.
Venous Pertaining to the veins.
Vertebral Pertaining to the vertebrae or spinal column.
Von Hippel-Lindau disease A rare genetic disease in which benign and/or malignant tumors and cysts grow in areas of the body that have a rich blood supply.