Medical terms - Letter C
1,581 terms start with the letter C.
-
Ciliary body melanoma
See: Intraocular melanoma
-
Ciliary muscle
One of the muscles that relax the zonules to enable the lens to change shape for focusing. The zonules are fibers that hold the lens suspended in position and enable it to change shape during accommodation.
-
Ciliary neuralgia
A distinctive syndrome of headaches, better known today as cluster headache. There are two main clinical patterns of cluster headache -- the episodic and the chronic: > >Episodic: This is the most common pattern of…
-
Cilium
A fine hairlike projection from a cell such as those in the respiratory tract. Cilia can help to sweep away fluids and particles. Some single-celled organisms use the rhythmical motion of cilia for locomotion. Cilium is…
-
Cinacalcet
A drug that acts as a calcimimetic and that is marketed under the trade name Sensipar. For more information, see: Calcimimetic.
-
Circadian
Refers to events occurring within a 24-hour period, in the span of a full (24-hour) day, as in a circadian rhythm. Circadian rhythmicity is a fundamental property possessed by all organisms. These rhythms are driven by…
-
Circinate balanitis
A form of skin inflammation around the penis in males with Reiter's syndrome. The skin around the shaft and tip (glans) penis can become inflamed and scale. This inflammation around the penis can be helped by cortisone…
-
Circle of Willis
An arterial circle at the base of the brain that is of critical importance. The circle of Willis receives all the blood that is pumped up the two internal carotid arteries that come up the front of the neck and that is…
-
Circular breathing
Inhaling through the nose and inflating the cheeks and neck with air at the same time. Some saxophone players do circular breathing; this may not be a safe practice since it may reduce blood flow to the brain.
-
Circulation
The movement of fluid in a regular or circuitous course. Although the noun 'circulation' does not necessarily refer to the circulation of the blood, for all practical purposes today it does. Heart failure is an example…
-
Circulation, fetal
The blood circulation in the fetus (the unborn baby). Before birth, the blood from the heart that is destined (in the pulmonary artery) for the lungs is shunted away from the lungs and returned to the greatest of…
-
Circulatory
Having to do with the circulation, the movement of fluid in a regular or circuitous course. Although the adjective 'circulatory' need not necessarily refer to the circulation of the blood, for all practical purposes…
-
Circulatory system
The system that moves blood throughout the body. The circulatory system is composed of the heart, arteries, capillaries, and veins. This remarkable system transports oxygenated blood from the lungs and heart throughout…
-
Circum-
Prefix meaning around, surrounding, or encircling. As in circumcision, circumflex, and circumjacent. From the Latin preposition circum meaning round
-
Circumcision
Circumcision: Surgery that removes the foreskin (the loose tissue) covering the glans of the penis. Circumcision may be performed for religious or cultural reasons, or health reasons. Newborn circumcision diminishes the…
-
Circumflex
Curved like a bow. In anatomy, circumflex describes a structure that bends around like a bow. For example, the circumflex branch of the left coronary artery. In linguistics, a circumflex is a caret-shaped mark (^) used…
-
Circumjacent
Lying around in the sense of surrounding. Related terms include superjacent, subjacent, and adjacent. From circum-, around + the Latin jacere, to lie = to lie around
-
Cirrhosis
Cirrhosis: An abnormal liver condition characterized by irreversible scarring of the liver. Alcohol and viral hepatitis B and C are among the many causes of cirrhosis. Cirrhosis can cause yellowing of the skin…
-
Cirrhosis and gray matter degeneration
Bral gray matter, Alpers: A progressive disease of the nervous system characterized by spasticity (tightness), myoclonus and dementia and by liver problems with jaundice and cirrhosis. This disorder, first described by…
-
CISM
Critical incident stress management
-
Cisplatin
An anticancer drug that belongs to the family of drugs called platinum compounds. Cisplatin is used in the treatment of a wide range of malignancies, including advanced cancer of the ovary, testis, and bladder…
-
Citrovorum factor
See: Leucovorin
-
Citrulline
A non-standard amino acid that is not normally present in protein. Citrulline is created in the body as an intermediate in the conversion of the amino acid ornithine to arginine in a metabolic pathway called the urea…
-
Citrulline antibody
Citrulline antibody: An antibody (an immune protein) directed against a circular peptide (a ring of amino acids) containing an unusual ('non-standard') amino acid called citrulline that is not normally present in…
-
Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniform
Rvices: See: CHAMPUS
-
CK
The military designation for cyanogen chloride. See: Cyanide
-
Cl (chloride)
Cl is the chemical symbol for chloride, the major anion found in the fluid outside of cells and in blood. An anion is the negatively charged part of certain substances such as table salt (sodium chloride or NaCl) when…
-
CLA
1. Conjugated linoleic acid.2. Cervical lymphadenopathy (swollen lymph nodes in the neck).3. Congenital lactic acidosis.4. Caseous lymphadenitis (cheeselike lymph nodes, usually due to TB).
-
Clade
Related organisms descended from a common ancestor. For example, isolate M of HIV-1 (the human immunodeficiency virus) consists of at least ten clades. Imported from the Greek, klados, branch in 1911 in reference to the…
-
Clamydia
A common misspelling of Chlamydia
-
Clap
Gonorrhea, a bacterial infection transmitted by sexual contact. Gonorrhea is one of the oldest known sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). In women infected with this bacteria (Neisseria gonorrhoeae), 25-40% will also…
-
Clark level of invasion
A method for determining the prognosis (outlook) with melanoma. The method was devised by the pathologist Wallace Clark and measures the depth of penetration of a melanoma into the skin according to anatomic layer…
-
Clasped thumbs and mental retardation
A syndrome with the following characteristic features: (1) neurologically: mental retardation and aphasia (lack of speech); (2) limbs: adducted (clasped) thumbs, absent extensor pollicis longus and/or brevis muscles to…
-
Classic typhus
See: Typhus, epidemic
-
Classification of diseases
See: Disease nomenclature
-
Claudication
Claudication: Limping. The word 'claudication' comes from the Latin 'claudicare' meaning to limp. The Roman emperor Claudius (who ruled from A.D. 41-54) was so named because he limped, probably because of a birth…
-
Claudication, intermittent
Claudication, intermittent: An aching, crampy, tired, and sometimes burning pain in the legs that comes and goes -- it typically occurs with walking and goes away with rest -- due to poor circulation of blood in the…
-
Claudication, venous
Claudication, venous: Limping and/or pain due to inadequate venous drainage, poor return of blood by the veins of the legs
-
Claustrophobia
An abnormal and persistent fear of closed spaces, of being closed in or being shut in, as in elevators, tunnels, or any other confined space. The fear is excessive (and quite common). The word 'claustrophobia' is an…
-
Clavicle
The bone extending from the breastbone (sternum) at the base of the front of the neck to the shoulder
-
Clavus
Synonymous with corns. The word 'clavus' is the Latin word for nail
-
Clay-shoveler's fracture
An uncommon breakage of the spine of the vertebrae from the lower neck or upper back as a result of stress. Clay-shoveler's fracture usually occurs in laborers who perform activities involving lifting weights rapidly…
-
Cleft lip
The presence of one or two vertical fissures (clefts) in the upper lip -- cleft lip can be on one side only (unilateral) or on both sides (bilateral) -- resulting from failure of the normal process of fusion of the lip…
-
Cleft palate
An opening in the roof of the mouth (the palate) due to a failure of the palatal shelves to come fully together from either side of the mouth and fuse, as they normally should, during embryonic development. The opening…
-
Cleft palate prosthesis
A prosthetic device designed to close the opening left by a cleft in the palate and thereby to improve feeding and speech
-
Cleft uvula
The uvula, the little V-shaped fleshy mass hanging from the back of the soft palate, is cleft. . Cleft uvula is a common minor anomaly occurring in about 1% of whites and 10% of Native Americans. Persons with a cleft…
-
Cleidocranial dysostosis
>Absent or incompletely formed collar bones (the 'cleido-' part refers to the clavicles, the collar bones) The child with this disorder can bring its shoulders together or nearly so; and >Typical cranial and facial…
-
Cleidocranial dysplasia
Cleidocranial dysplasia: A genetic (inherited) disorder of bone development characterized by: > >Absent or incompletely formed collar bones (the 'cleido-' part refers to the clavicles, the collar bones) The child with…
-
Click-murmur syndrome
Mitral valve prolapse (also known as 'Barlow's syndrome'), the most common heart valve abnormality, affecting 5-10% of the world population. Most patients have no symptoms and require no treatment, but some have fatigue…
-
Climacteric
1. The menopause in women.2. The corresponding time in the life of men.From the Greek klimakter, meaning literally a rung of a ladder or figuratively a critical point