Medical terms - Letter D (page 2) | MedicalVocabulary.org

Deafness with goiter

Deafness with goiter: See Pendred syndrome
Deafness, acquired

Deafness, acquired: The loss of hearing that occurs or develops some time during a person's life but was not present at birth. Acquired deafness contrasts to congenital deafness which is present at birth. The…
Deafness, age-related

See: Presbycusis
Deafness, congenital

Deafness, congenital: Loss of hearing present at birth. Congenital deafness contrasts to acquired deafness which occurs after birth. The distinction between congenital and acquired deafness specifies only the time that…
Deafness, nonsyndromic

A blood clot (thrombus) in a deep vein in the thigh or leg. The clot can break off as an embolus and make its way to the lung, where it can cause respiratory distress and respiratory failure. Deep vein thrombosis is…
Deafness-ichthyosis-keratitis syndrome

See Keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness syndrome
Death

1. The end of life. The cessation of life. (These common definitions of death ultimately depend upon the definition of life, upon which there is no consensus.) 2. The permanent cessation of all vital bodily functions…
Death rate

The number of deaths in the population divided by the average population (or the population at midyear) is the crude death rate. In 1994, for example, the crude death rate per 1,000 population was 8.8 in the United…
Death rate, infant

The number of children dying under a year of age divided by the number of live births that year. The infant death rate is also called the infant mortality rate. The infant mortality rate is an important measure of the…
Death, black

The black plague or the plague. In 14th century Europe, the victims of the 'black plague' had bleeding below the skin (subcutaneous hemorrhage) which made darkened ('blackened') their bodies. The black death swept…
DEB (dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa)

See: Dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa
Debilitate

To impair the strength or to enfeeble. A chronic progressive disease may debilitate a patient. So may, temporarily, a major surgical procedure. In both cases the weakness is pervasive. Weakness in an arm or leg…
Debride

To remove dead, contaminated or adherent tissue or foreign material. The purpose of wound debridement is to remove all materials that may promote infection and impede healing. This may be done by enzymatic debridement…
Debridement

The act of debriding (removing dead, contaminated or adherent tissue or foreign material). Debridement encompasses enzymatic debridement (as with proteolytic enzymes), mechanical nonselective debridement (as in a…
Debris flow injury

Also known as mudslide injury. See: Landslide injury
Debulk

To remove part of the bulk, usually of a tumor or dead tissue. Debulking may be done by surgery, irradiation, laser or chemotherapy
Decease

To depart from life; to die
Decompress

1. In general, to remove pressure physically or emotionally.2. In surgery, to remove pressure on a structure such as the spinal cord.3. To lessen atmospheric pressure on deep-sea divers returning to the surface, or on…
Decompression

1. In general, the removal of pressure.2. In surgery, a procedure to remove pressure on a structure, as in decompression of the spinal cord.3. The lessening of atmospheric pressure on deep-sea divers returning to the…
Decompression, biliary

See: Biliary decompression
Decongestant

A drug that shrinks the swollen membranes in the nose and makes it easier to breath. Decongestants can be taken orally or by nasal spray. Decongestant nasal sprays should not be used for more than five days without the…
Decortication

Removal of part or all of the outer surface of an organ such as the lung, kidney, or brain
Decubitus

Lying down. A decubitus ulcer is a bed sore, the consequence of lying in one position too long. The Latin 'decubitus' (meaning lying down) is related to 'cubitum' (the elbow) reflecting the fact the Romans habitually…
Decubitus ulcer

A bed sore, a skin ulcer that comes from lying in one position too long so that the circulation in the skin is compromised by the pressure, particularly over a bony prominence such as the sacrum (sacral decubitus). The…
Deep

A device put within the body that is designed to recognize certain types of abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias) and correct them. Defibrillators continuously monitor the heart rhythm in order to detect rapid…
Deep vein thrombosis

Deep vein thrombosis: A blood clot (thrombus) in a deep vein in the thigh or leg. The clot can break off as an embolus and make its way to the lung, where it can cause respiratory distress and respiratory failure. Deep…
Deer mouse

A deceptively cute rodent capable of carrying the types of hantavirus that cause HPS (hantavirus pulmonary syndrome) in the US. The deer mouse has big eyes and big ears. Its head and body are normally about 2 to 3…
Deerfly fever

An infection in rabbits and other wild rodents caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis that can be transmitted to humans by contact with infected animal tissues or ticks. Also called tularemia. The main mode of…
Defecation syncope

The temporary loss of consciousness (syncope) upon defecating (having a bowel movement). Syncope is the temporary loss of consciousness or, in plain English, fainting. The situations that trigger this reaction are…
Defect, atrial septal (ASD)

A hole in the septum, the wall, between the atria, the upper chambers of the heart. Commonly called an ASD. ASDs are a major class of congenital cardiac malformation
Defect, enzyme

An abnormality in the protein (enzyme) important in catalyzing a normal biochemical reaction in the body. Disorders result from a deficiency (or functional abnormality) of an enzyme. Archibald Garrod in 1902 was the…
Defect, neural tube

A major birth defect caused by abnormal development of the neural tube, the structure present during embryonic life which gives rise to the central nervous system -- the brain and spinal cord. Neural tube defects (NTDs)…
Defect, ventricular septal (VSD)

A hole in the septum (the wall) between the lower chambers of the heart (the ventricles). Ventricular Septal Defect is the most common type of heart malformation (congenital heart disease). At least 1 baby in every 500…
Defensin

A family of potent antibiotics made within the body by neutrophils (a type of white blood cell) and macrophages (cells that can engulf foreign particles). The defensins play important roles against invading microbes…
Defensive medicine

Medical practices designed to avert the future possibility of malpractice suits. In defensive medicine, responses are undertaken primarily to avoid liability rather than to benefit the patient. Doctors may order tests…
Defibrillation

The use of a carefully controlled electric shock, administered either through a device on the exterior of the chest wall or directly to the exposed heart muscle, to restart or normalize heart rhythms
Defibrillator

A device used to correct a dangerously abnormal heart rhythm, usually ventricular fibrillation, or to restart the heart by depolarizing its electrical conduction system and delivering brief measured electrical shocks to…
Defibrillator storm

A condition that arises when a defibrillator implanted in the chest to right an arrhythmia (an abnormal heart rhythm) fires off frequently --sometimes several times a day or even more often -- each time with a jolt like…
Defibrillator, automated external

Destruction of the underlying cartilage framework of the outer ear (pinnae), usually caused by either infection or trauma, resulting in a thickening of the ear. Classically, blood collects (hematoma) between the ear…
Defibrillator, implantable cardiac

A device put within the body that is designed to recognize certain types of abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias) and correct them. Defibrillators continuously monitor the heart rhythm in order to detect rapid…
Deficiency, adenosine deaminase (ADA)

A genetic (inherited) condition that results in a immune deficiency disorder called severe combined immunodeficiency disease. Adenosine deaminase is an enzyme that plays a key role in salvaging purine molecules. ADA…
Deficiency, alpha-1 antitrypsin

See: Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency
Deficiency, alpha-galactosidase A

See: Fabry disease
Deficiency, ankyrin

Known also as hereditary spherocytosis (HS), this is a genetic disorder of the red blood cell membrane clinically characterized by anemia, jaundice (yellowing) and splenomegaly (enlargement of the spleen), due to…
Deficiency, calcium

See: Calcium deficiency
Deficiency, ceruloplasmin

Lack of the protein ceruloplasmin from the blood and accumulation of iron in the pancreas, liver and brain, causing diabetes and progressive nervous system degeneration with the tremors and gait abnormalities…
Deficiency, FALDH

Also known as the Sjogren-Larsson syndrome, this is a genetic (inherited) disease usually characterized by a triad of clinical findings consisting of ichthyosis (thickened fish-like skin), spastic paraplegia (spasticity…
Deficiency, FAO

Also known as the Sjogren-Larsson syndrome, this is a genetic (inherited) disease usually characterized by a triad of clinical findings consisting of ichthyosis (thickened fish-like skin), spastic paraplegia (spasticity…
Deficiency, fatty alcohol: NAD+ oxidoreductase

Also known as the Sjogren-Larsson syndrome, this is a genetic (inherited) disease usually characterized by a triad of clinical findings consisting of ichthyosis (thickened fish-like skin), spastic paraplegia (spasticity…
Deficiency, fatty aldehyde dehydrogenase

Also known as the Sjogren-Larsson syndrome, this is a genetic (inherited) disease usually characterized by a triad of clinical findings consisting of ichthyosis (thickened fish-like skin), spastic paraplegia (spasticity…