Medical terms - Letter D (page 15) | MedicalVocabulary.org

Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan

See: Conan Doyle, Sir Arthur
Doyne honeycomb retinal dystrophy

Abbreviated DHRD. An eye disease also known as malattia leventinese. See: Malattia leventinese
DPC4

See: MADH4
DPT

Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus vaccine. Today the more frequent abbreviation is DTP (for Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis vaccine)
DPT immunization

Immunization to protect against diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), and tetanus. DPT immunizations are given in a series of 5 shots at 2, 4, 6, 18 months of age and 4-6 years of age. Thanks to vaccination programs…
DR syndrome

See: Okihiro syndrome
Dr. Andrew Weil

Dr. Andrew Weil is a physician and proponent of alternative medicine. Dr. Weil is the Director and founder of the Program in Integrative Medicine (PIM) at the University of Arizona in Tucson. His philosophy stresses…
Dr. Joseph Moscati

See: Moscati, St. Joseph
Dracunculiasis

A parasitic disease caused by the largest parasite that plagues people and bores into their tissues -- the guinea worm Dracunculus medinensis. Dracunculiasis is also called guinea worm disease and end-of-the-road…
Draft DNA sequence

Sequence of a DNA with less accuracy than a finished sequence. In a draft sequence, some segments are missing or are in the wrong order or are oriented incorrectly. A draft sequence is as opposed to a finished DNA…
Drain

A device for removing fluid from a cavity or wound. A drain is typically a tube or wick. As a verb, to allow fluid to be released from a confined area
Drain, Jackson Pratt

See: JP drain
Drain, Jackson-Pratt

See: JP drain
Drain, JP

See: JP drain
Drain, Penrose

See: Penrose drain
DRE (digital rectal exam)

An exam done to detect abnormalities that can be felt (palpated) from within the rectum. The doctor inserts a lubricated, gloved finger into the rectum and feels for anything that is not normal. The digital rectal exam…
Dream, pre-sleep

Also called a hypnagogic hallucination, this type of dream is characteristically vivid and occurs as one is falling asleep or awakening
Dreams

Thoughts, visions, and other sensations that occupy the mind in sleep. Dreams occur during that part of sleep when there are rapid eye movements (REMs). We have 3 to 5 periods of REM sleep per night. They usually come…
Dressler syndrome

Pericarditis (inflammation of the pericardium, the sac-like covering of the heart) after a heart attack. Named for the Polish-born American physician William Dressler (1890-1969)
Drill, dental

A device that dentists use to drill into teeth. Primitive dental drills were used in the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1868, American dentist George F. Green added power to the drill with a pneumatic version run by…
Drinox

Trade name of the insecticide aldrin. See: Aldrin and dieldrin
Drip

In medical usage, a drip is not a dull, unattractive person but a device for administering a fluid drop-by-drop into a vein. It is an intravenous (IV) fluid dripping into a vein, an intravenous fluid drip, a solution…
Drop attack

See: Atonic seizure
Drop seizure

See: Atonic seizure
Dropsy

An old term for the swelling of soft tissues due to the accumulation of excess water. In years gone by, a person might have been said to have dropsy. Today one would be more descriptive and specify the cause. Thus, the…
Drosophila

The fruit fly. One species, Drosophila melanogaster, is a favorite model organism in genetics and developmental biology. See also: Drosophila genome
Drosophila genome

All of the genetic information contained in Drosophila, the fruitfly. The genomes of particular nonhuman organisms such as Drosophila have been studied for a number of reasons including the need to improve sequencing…
DRRS

See: Okihiro syndrome
Drug activity

A measure of the physiological response a drug produces. A less active drug produces less response (and visa versa)
Drug caution codes

Abbreviations on medications that indicate caution. While not a part of the historical heritage of ancient prescription abbreviations, drug caution codes provide very valuable warnings. They include both universal and…
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

Every prescription written in the United States bears a DEA number, that of the prescribing doctor, the DEA being the Drug Enforcement Administration of the U.S. Department of Justice. Historically, the DEA's roots go…
Drug resistance

The ability of bacteria and other microorganisms to withstand a drug to which they were once sensitive and were once slowed in growth or killed outright.
Drug test

An examination of biologic material (such as urine, hair, saliva, or sweat) to detect the presence of specific drugs and determine prior drug use. Drug tests may be performed to detect illegal drug use as well as the…
Drug, ACE-inhibitor

A drug that inhibits ACE (angiotensin converting enzyme) which is important to the formation of angiotensin II. Angiotensin II causes arteries in the body to constrict and thereby raises the blood pressure. ACE…
Drug, anti-infective

Something capable of acting against infection, by inhibiting the spread of an infectious agent or by killing the infectious agent outright. Anti-infective is a general term that encompasses antibacterials, antibiotics…
Drug, antibiotic

A drug used to treat bacterial infections. The original definition of an antibiotic was a substance produced by one microorganism that selectively inhibits the growth of another microorganism. However, wholly synthetic…
Drug, antifungal

A drug used to treat fungal infections. Examples of antifungal drugs include miconazole (MONISTAT) and clotrimazole (LOTRIMIN, MYCELEX).
Drug, antihypertensive

As the name clearly implies, a drug aimed at reducing high blood pressure (hypertension)
Drug, antimicrobial

A drug used to treat a microbial infection. The term 'antimicrobial' is a general one that refers to a group of drugs that includes antibiotics, antifungals, antiprotozoals, and antivirals.
Drug, antiprotozoal

Something that destroys protozoa or inhibits their growth and ability to reproduce. A few of the protozoa of medical importance include Plasmodium (the cause of malaria); Entamoeba histolytica (the cause of amebiasis…
Drug, antithyroid

A drug directed against the thyroid gland. The antithyroid drugs include carbimazole, methimazole, and propylthiouracil (PTU). These drugs are used to treat hyperthyroidism (overactivity of the thyroid gland) in order…
Drug, antiviral

An agent that kills viruses or suppresses their replication and, hence, inhibits their capability to multiply and reproduce. For example, amantadine (BRAND name: SYMMETREL) is a synthetic (man- made) drug that inhibits…
Drug, generic

>The chemical name of a drug. >A term referring to the chemical makeup of a drug rather than to the advertised brand name under which the drug is sold. >A term referring to any drug marketed under its chemical name…
Drug, over-the-counter (OTC)

A drug for which a prescription is not needed
Drug, prescription

A drug requiring a prescription, as opposed to an over-the-counter drug, which can be purchased without one. The word 'prescription' comes from the Latin 'praescriptus' compounded from 'prae', before + scribere, to…
Drug, sulfa

One of the sulfonamides, the sulfa-related antibiotics which are used to treat bacterial and some fungal infections. The first sulfa drug was prontosil. It was discovered by the German physician and chemist Gerhard…
Drug, tocolytic

A medication that can inhibit labor, slow down or halt the contractions of the uterus. Tocolytic agents are widely used today to treat premature labor and permit pregnancy to proceed and so permit the fetus to gain in…
Drug-induced liver disease

Drug-induced liver disease: Drug-induced liver diseases are diseases of the liver that are caused by physician-prescribed medications, over-the-counter medications, vitamins, hormones, herbs, illicit ('recreational')…
Drug-resistant tuberculosis

See: Tuberculosis, drug-resistant
Drug-transporter gene

See: Gene, transporter