Medical terms - Letter F (page 13) | MedicalVocabulary.org

Fracture, torus

A fracture in which one side of the bone bends, but does not actually break. Torus fractures normally heal on their own within a month with rest and disuse, although they can cause soreness and discomfort
Fracture, transverse

A fracture in which the break is across the bone, at a right angle to the long axis of the bone. NTER> A fracture is a break in the bone or cartilage. It usually is a result of trauma but can be due to an acquired…
Fractured hip

Broken bone in the hip, a key health problem among the elderly, usually due to a fall or other kind of trauma involving direct impact to the hip bone which has been weakened by osteoporosis. The part of the hip most…
Fragile site

A term devised in 1969 by Frederick Hecht to denote a heritable point on a chromosome where gaps and breaks tend to occur.
Fragile X chromosome

An X chromosome with a heritable fragile site associated with a frequent form of mental retardation -- the fragile X syndrome. The fragile X chromosome was first sighted by Dr. Herbert A. Lubs in 1969 who termed it the…
Fragile X syndrome

Fragile X syndrome: One of the most common causes of inherited mental retardation and neuropsychiatric disease in human beings, affects as many as one in 2000 males and one in 4000 females. The syndrome is also known as…
Fragile X tremor/ataxia syndrome

Abbreviated FXTAS (pronounced fax-tass). A progressive neurological disorder that strikes men over age 50 and causes tremor, ataxia (balance problems) and dementia that become increasingly severe with age. These men may…
Frailty syndrome

A condition, seen particularly in older patients, characterized by low functional reserve, easy tiring, decrease of libido, mood disturbance, accelerated osteoporosis, decreased muscle strength, and high susceptibility…
Frambesia

Also known as yaws, frambesia is a common chronic infectious disease that occurs mainly in the warm humid regions of the tropics with characteristic bumps on the skin of the face, hands, feet and genital area. Almost…
Frame, open reading

See: Open reading frame
Frame, reading

See: Reading frame
Framingham Study

A landmark study begun in 1948 in which some 12,000 residents of the town of Framingham, Massachusetts were enrolled in a study designed to gather medical data and, more recently, DNA samples. The participants in the…
Francis Crick

See: Crick, Francis
Frankenfood

Perjorative term for genetically modified food whether it be derived from genetically engineered plants or animals. This derogatory term was coined from Franken(stein) + food on June 16, 1992 by Paul Lewis, Professor of…
Frasier syndrome

A condition characterized by the presence of an XY sex chromosome constitution and undermasculinized external genitalia that may range from ambiguous in appearance to normal-looking female genitalia. There is also…
Fraternal twin

Twin: A twin who have shared a common uterine environment with its sibling. Fraternal twins are due to the fertilization of two different ova by different sperm. Fraternal twins are also called dizygotic twins.
Freckle

A flat circular spot on the skin about the size of the head of a nail that develops after repeated exposure to sunlight, particularly in someone of fair complexion. Freckles may be red, yellow, tan, light-brown, brown…
Freckles

Freckles: See: Freckle.
Fred L. Soper

See: Soper, Fred L.
Fredrickson

See: Fredrickson, Donald
Fredrickson, Donald

(1924-2002) American physiologist and biomedical research leader who made significant contributions to medicine over the course of four decades. Fredrickson's system of classification of abnormalities in fat transport…
French disease

Syphilis. Depending upon someone's thoughts as to where the disease came from, syphilis was also known as the Italian, Spanish, German and Polish disease. The name 'syphilis' was coined by Hieronymus Fracastorius…
French paradox

A small structure that has a restraining function. For example, the lingual frenulum attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth and appears to restrain it. A frenulum is literally a small bridle. It is the diminutive…
Frenulum

A small structure that has a restraining function. For example, the lingual frenulum attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth and appears to restrain it. A frenulum is literally a small bridle. It is the diminutive…
Frenum

A restraining structure. Frenum is Latin for a bridle. A small frenum is a frenulum
Frequency, urinary

Urinating too often, at too frequent intervals, not due to an unusually large volume of urine, but rather to a decrease in the capacity of the bladder to hold urine.
Freudian

Pertaining to the neurologist, psychiatrist and founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) or to the theory and practice of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy as developed by Freud
Frey syndrome

Sweating on one side of the forehead, face, scalp, and neck occurring soon after ingesting food as a result of damage to a nerve that goes to the large saliva gland in the cheek (the parotid gland). Frey syndrome is the…
Fridayitis

A perplexing condition that suddenly strikes some workers and students on Friday and leads to their absence that day from work or school. Fridayitis is an idiopathic disorder, one of unknown origin. It can occur in…
Friend in dying

See: Doula (the second meaning)
Frigidity

Failure of a female to respond to sexual stimulus; aversion on the part of a woman to sexual intercourse; failure of a female to achieve an orgasm (anorgasmia) during sexual intercourse. This disorder can stem from…
Frontal

In anatomy, pertaining to the forehead. As, for example, the frontal bone, frontal sinus, and frontal nerve. From the Latin 'frons' meaning the forehead or brow
Frontal bone

The large bone that makes up the forehead and supplies the upper edge and roof of the orbit (eye socket). The frontal bone articulates (comes together) with a number of other bones including the parietal, nasal…
Frontal lobe

The part of each hemisphere of the brain located behind the forehead that serves to regulate and mediate the higher intellectual functions. The frontal lobes have intricate connections to other areas of the brain. In…
Frostbite

Frostbite: Damage to tissues from freezing due to the formation of ice crystals within cells, rupturing the cells and leading to cell death. Frostbite goes through several stages: > >First degree injury: When only the…
Frotteurism

Frotteurism is a problem where the focus of the person's sexual urges is related to touching or rubbing his genitals against the body of a non-consenting, unfamiliar person. In most cases of frotteurism, a male rubs his…
Frozen shoulder

Frozen shoulder: Constant severe limitation of the range of motion of the shoulder due to scarring around the shoulder joint (adhesive capsulitis). Frozen shoulder is an unwanted consequence of rotator cuff disease…
Fructose

A sugar that occurs naturally in fruits and honey. Fructose has 4 calories per gram
Fruit fly

Scientifically known as Drosophila melanogaster. A favorite organism in genetics and biology research since 1910 when Thomas Hunt Morgan at Columbia University chose it as the animal with which he and his students (and…
Fruitfly genome

See: Drosophila genome
Ft.

Abbreviation for foot, a measure of length. For example, 6 ft. is 1.83 meters
FTA-ABS test

FTA-ABS stands for fluorescent treponemal antibody absorbed, a blood serum screening test for syphilis designed to demonstrate the presence or absence of specific antibodies directed against the organism (Treponema…
FTT

Failure to thrive. Refers to a child whose physical growth is significantly less than that of peers. There is no official consensus on what constitutes FTT. It usually refers to a child whose growth is below the 3rd or…
Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy

See: Corneal dystrophy, Fuchs endothelial
Fugue state

The complete order of bases in a gene. This order determines which protein a gene will produce.
Full gene sequence

The complete order of bases in a gene. This order determines which protein a gene will produce
Functional food

Functional foods are 'those foods that encompass potentially healthful products including any modified food or ingredient that may provide a health benefit beyond the traditional nutrients it contains,' as defined by…
Functional gene test

Test for a specific protein which indicates that the corresponding gene is not only present but active
Functional genomics

The function of each gene in the genome. Functional genomics is the study of genes, their resulting proteins, and the role played by the proteins the body's biochemical processes. Functional genomics also involves…
Functional hemispherectomy

A functional hemispherectomy is a variation of a hemispherectomy, a radical procedure in which one entire hemisphere, or one half of the brain, is removed. With a functional hemispherectomy, one hemisphere is…