Medical terms - Letter Q | MedicalVocabulary.org

Q arm of a chromosome

The long arm of a chromosome. All human chromosomes have 2 arms -- a short arm and a long arm -- that are separated from each other only by the centromere, the point at which the chromosome is attached to the spindle…
Q bands

A form of chromosome band, one of the bright and dull fluorescent bands seen alternating along the length of chromosomes under ultraviolet light after the chromosomes are stained with quinacrine. The Q in Q band stands…
Q fever

A vaccine against Q fever, an illness first recognized in Australia in the 1930's that affects people dealing with infected sheep and cattle and their hides and carcasses. The microscopic bacterial agent of Q fever…
Q fever vaccine

A vaccine against Q fever, an illness first recognized in Australia in the 1930's that affects people dealing with infected sheep and cattle and their hides and carcasses. The microscopic bacterial agent of Q fever…
Q in population genetics

The frequency of the less common of two different alternative (allelic) versions of a gene. (The frequency of the more common allele is p).
Q.2h

On a prescription, every two hours
Q.3h.

On a prescription, every three hours
Q.d. (on prescription)

Seen on a prescription, q.d. (or qd) means one a day (from the Latin quaque die). The abbreviation is sometimes written without a period in capital letters as 'QD'. However it is written, it is one of a number of…
Q.h. (on prescription)

Abbreviation for 'every hour.' On a prescription or doctor's hospital orders, q.h. means every hour. Also written qh (without the periods). From the Latin quaque meaning once + h for hour. However it is written, it is…
Q.i.d. (on prescription)

Seen on a prescription, q.i.d. (or qid) means 4 times a day (from the Latin quater in die). The abbreviation q.i.d. is also sometimes written without a period in capital letters as 'QID'. However it is written, it is…
Q.n.s.

On a lab report, q.n.s. (or qns or QNS) means Quantity Not Sufficient. Not enough blood, urine or whatever to do the test
Q.s.

If a medicine is to be taken every so- many hours, it is written "q_h"; the "q" standing for the Latin word for once "quaque" and the "h" indicating the number of hours. So, for example, "2 caps q4h" means "Take 2…
QALY

Quality adjusted life year, a year of life adjusted for its quality or its value. A year in perfect health is considered equal to 1.0 QALY. The value of a year in ill health would be discounted. For example, a year…
Qd (on prescription)

Seen on a prescription, qd (or, written with periods, q.d.) means one a day (from the Latin quaque die). The abbreviation is sometimes written without a period in capital letters as 'QD'. However it is written, it is…
QHC

Qualified health claim
Qi gong

('chee-GUNG') A component of traditional Chinese medicine that combines movement, meditation, and regulation of breathing to enhance the flow of qi (an ancient term given to what is believed to be vital energy) in the…
Qid (on prescription)

A Chinese herb (also called sweet wormwood) from which is extracted the antimalarial agent artemisinin.
Qinghaosu

A Chinese herb (also called sweet wormwood) from which is extracted the antimalarial agent artemisinin
QNS

On a lab report, Quantity Not Sufficient. The sample is not large enough to do the test
QRS complex

The deflections in the tracing of the electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), comprising the Q, R, and S waves, that represent the ventricular activity of the heart (the depolarization of the ventricles)
QT syndrome, long

An inherited defect in the heart rhythm. In the US alone, it is estimated that 4,000 children and young adults die yearly of the long QT syndrome. It is a common cause of sudden death among school athletes, as well as…
Quack

1) A practitioner who suggests the use of substances or devices for the prevention or treatment of disease that are known to be ineffective. 2) A person who pretends to be able to diagnose or heal people, but is…
Quackery

Deliberate misrepresentation of the ability of a substance or device for the prevention or treatment of disease. We may think that the day of patent medicines is gone but look around you and you will see them still…
Quadrant

A quarter. For example, the liver is in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen.
Quadriceps

Although the term 'quadriceps' technically may refer to any four-headed muscle, it usually refers to and is synonymous with the quadriceps muscle of the thigh, the large muscle that comes down the femur (the bone of the…
Quadriceps reflex

See: Knee jerk
Quadriceps stretch

An exercise to stretch the quadriceps muscle, the large muscle in the front of the thigh. To do this exercise, lie on your left side, on the floor. Your hips should be lined up so that the right one is directly above…
Quadriparesis

Weakness of all four limbs, both arms and both legs, as for example from muscular dystrophy.
Quadriplegia

Paralysis of all four limbs, both arms and both legs, as from a high spinal cord accident or stroke.
Quadriplegic

Pertaining to quadriplegia (paralysis of all four limbs -- both arms and both legs), as from a high spinal cord accident
Qualified health claim

A claim authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that must be supported by credible scientific evidence regarding a relationship between a substance (specific food or food component) and a disease or…
Qualify

In medicine, to finish training. One of the first women to receive a medical degree (albeit pretending to be a man), James Miranda Barry qualified in medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 1812
Qualitative

Having to do with quality. In contrast to quantitative (which pertains to quantity, the amount)
Quality adjusted life year (QALY)

A year of life adjusted for its quality or its value. A year in perfect health is considered equal to 1.0 QALY. The value of a year in ill health would be discounted. For example, a year bedridden might have a value…
Quality of life

An important consideration in medical care, quality of life refers to the patient's ability to enjoy normal life activities. Some medical treatments can seriously impair quality of life without providing appreciable…
Qualm

1. Sickness, disease, pestilence, or death. As in 'A thousand slain and not of qualm ystorve [not dead of sickness]' (Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales) 2. A sudden sick feeling. As in 'A qualm came over me, a horrid…
Quantitative

Having to do with quantity or with the amount. See also qualitative.
Quaque (on prescription)

If a medicine is to be taken every so- many hours, it is written 'q_h'; the 'q' standing for the Latin word for once 'quaque' and the 'h' indicating the number of hours. So, for example, '2 caps q4h' means 'Take 2…
Quaque die (on prescription)

Seen on a prescription, qd (or, written with periods, q.d.) means one a day (from the Latin quaque die). The abbreviation is sometimes written without a period in capital letters as 'QD'. However it is written, it is…
Quarantine

The period of isolation decreed to control the spread of infectious disease. Before the era of antibiotics, quarantine was one of the few available means for halting the spread of infectious diseases. It is still…
Quasi-

Prefix meaning seemingly. As, for example, in quasidominant, seemingly dominant.
Quasidiploid

Describing a cell that seems to have the usual two full sets of 23 chromosomes, but does not. Many malignant cells are quasidiploid. Also called pseudodiploid
Quasidominant

Pattern of inheritance that seems due to a dominant trait but is in fact due to the mating of a person who has a recessive disorder (with two copies of a gene causing the disease) with someone who is an asymptomatic…
Quater in die (on prescription)

Seen on a prescription, qid (or q.i.d.) means 4 times a day (from the Latin quater in die). The abbreviation qid or q.i.d. is also sometimes written without a period in capital letters as 'QID'. However it is written…
Queasy

A feeling of nausea
Queensland tick typhus

One of the tick-borne rickettsial diseases of the eastern hemisphere. Queensland tick typhus is similar to Rocky Mountain spotted fever, another tick-borne rickettsial disease, but is less severe. The clinical features…
Quickening

The moment during pregnancy when the baby is first felt to move
Quiescence

Inactivity, quietness. In cells, quiescence is the state of not dividing. In neurons (nerve cells), quiescence is the state of not firing. The word comes from the Latin 'quiescere', to become quiet. Quiescence suggests…
Quiescent

Marked by a state of inactivity, repose, or tranquillity. For example, a quiescent stem cell is a stem cell that is resting at the time but that might be stimulated later to divide and proliferate. Quiescent also means…
Quinacrine

An antimalarial drug and, in cytogenetics, a fluorescent dye used to stain chromosomes. The Y chromosome stains brilliantly with quinacrine