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

Sodium

The major positive ion (cation) in fluid outside of cells. The chemical notation for sodium is Na+. When combined with chloride, the resulting substance is table salt. Excess sodium (such as from fast food hamburger and…
Sodium perchlorate

See: Perchlorate
Soft chancre

See: Chancroid
Soft palate

The muscular part of the roof of the mouth. The soft palate is directly behind the hard palate. It lacks bone and so is soft
Soft sore

See: Chancroid
Soft tissue sarcoma

A malignant tumor that begins in the muscle, fat, fibrous tissue, blood vessels, or other 'soft' supporting tissues of the body. Soft tissue sarcomas do not originate in bone or cartilage
Soft ulcer

See: Chancroid
Solar keratosis

Synonymous with actinic keratosis. See: Keratosis, actinic
Solipsism

The doctrine that I alone exist. The self can know only its feelings and changes. There is only subjective reality. Solipsism is of importance to philosophy and psychology. Rene Descartes (1596-1650), the French…
Solitary tapeworm

Taenia solium
Solitude, fear of

An abnormal and persistent fear of solitude, of being alone. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety even though they realize that being alone does not threaten their well-being. They may worry about being…
Somatic

1. Relating to the body. a. As distinguished from the mind (the psyche). b. As distinguished from the gonads. From the Greek word somatikos meaning body.
Somatic cell

Any cell in the body other than an egg or sperm
Somatic cell nuclear transfer

The transfer of the nucleus from a somatic cell into an egg from which the nucleus has been removed
Somatic mutation

A mutation in a somatic cell, in contrast to a mutation in a germ cell. See also: Acquired mutation.
Somatization

The process by which psychologic distress is expressed as physical symptoms. Somatization is an unconscious process. In somatization, mental experiences or states are 'converted' to bodily symptoms. A tension headache…
Somatoform disorder

See: Body dysmorphic disorder
Somatostatin

A hormone widely distributed throughout the body, especially in the hypothalamus and pancreas, that acts as an important regulator of endocrine and nervous system function by inhibiting the secretion of several other…
Somatotropin

Growth hormone, a polypeptide containing 191 amino acids, produced by the anterior pituitary, the front section of the pituitary gland. It acts by stimulating the release of another hormone called somatomedin by the…
Somatropin

Growth hormone made by the pituitary gland or a synthetic version of that hormone. Naturally occurring somatropin is a polypeptide containing 191 amino acids. It is produced specifically by the anterior pituitary, the…
Somnambulism

A sleepwalker.
Somnambulist

Sleep talking. Talking in one's sleep is considered a normal phenomenon that is of no medical or psychological consequence.
Somniloquy

Sleep talking. Talking in one's sleep is considered a normal phenomenon that is of no medical or psychological consequence
Somnolence

Sleepiness, the state of feeling drowsy, ready to fall asleep. A person experiencing somnolence is somnolent and is acting somnolently. Somnolence, somnolent, and somnolently go back to the Latin 'somnus' meaning…
Somnolent

Sleepy or tending to cause sleep. 'Somnolent' came from French. It descends from the Latin 'somnus' meaning 'sleep.' Also descended from 'somnus' are 'somnambulism' (sleepwalking) and 'insomnia' (the inability to sleep.
Somnoplasty

Somnoplasty: A surgical treatment to stop snoring. Somnoplasty uses heat energy to remove tissues of the soft palate and the uvula (the flap at the back of the palate). Somnoplasty is usually done as an office procedure…
Son

1. Principally, a male offspring. 2. Also a male adopted child. 3. A term of address for a male. From the Old English sunu, from an Indo-European word meaning to give birth
Sonata

Sonorous brand name for the sedative hypnotic drug generically known as zaleplon, used for sleep. For more pharmaceutical information, see: zaleplon
Soothing

Bringing comfort, solace, reassurance, peace, composure, quietude. To soothe is to allay, balm, becalm, calm, compose, lull, quiet, settle, still, or tranquilize. In medicine, an agent that is soothing is called a…
Soper, Fred L.

(1893-1977) American physician, epidemiologist and public health administrator. Soper won a Lasker Award in 1946 for organizing successful campaigns to eradicate yellow fever and malaria between 1927 and 1945. He also…
Sopor

Abnormally deep sleep, an unusually profound sleep, a stupor from which it is difficult to rouse a person. Sopor may be due to a drug. 'Sopor' is Latin for 'deep sleep.' The root is 'somnus,' the Latin for 'sleep' (and…
Soporific

Something such as a drug that causes or induces profound sleep. Tending to cause sleep or to dull the sense of awareness or alertness. The word 'soporific' is derived from 'sopor' meaning 'deep sleep.' The root is…
Sore

1. (adjective) A popular term for painful. I have sore fingers from typing dictionary terms. She has a sore throat. 2. (noun) A nondescript term for nearly any lesion of the skin or mucous membranes. He has a number of…
Sore throat

Sore throat: Pain in the throat. Sore throat may be caused by many different causes, including inflammation of the larynx, pharynx, or tonsils. First and foremost in frequency are viruses. Many viruses, and even those…
Sore, canker

Sore, canker: A small ulcer crater in the lining of the mouth that is often painful and very sensitive. Also known as an aphthous ulcer. Canker sores are one of the most common problems that occur in the mouth. About…
Sore, cold

A small sore situated on the face or in the mouth that causes pain, burning, or itching before bursting and crusting over. The favorite locations are on the lips, chin or cheeks and in the nostrils. Less frequented…
South Sudan disease

Disease in South Sudan, one of the poorest areas in the world and home to many maladies including malaria, river blindness, nodding syndrome, guinea worm disease, African sleeping sicknness, visceral leishmaniasis, and…
Southeast Asian hemorrhagic fever

A syndrome due to the dengue virus that tends to affect children under 10, causing abdominal pain, hemorrhage (bleeding) and circulatory collapse (shock). Known also as dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF), it starts abruptly…
Southern blot

A test commonly used in molecular biology and genetics, the purpose of the test being to check for a match between DNA molecules. In the Southern blot technique, DNA fragments are separated by a method called agarose…
Southern tick-associated rash illness

A disease characterized by a rash like that in Lyme disease, recognized in the southeastern and south-central US, associated with the bite of the lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum. The tick transmits the agent of the…
Soy milk allergy

Allergy: Soy protein formulas contain no cow milk and are therefore reasonable alternatives for infants with true cow milk allergy. However, some infants have allergy to both cow milk and soy proteins. These infants…
Span, memory

The number of items, usually words or numbers, that a person can retain and recall. Memory span is a test of working memory (short-term memory). In a typical test of memory span, an examiner reads a list of random…
Spanish disease

Syphilis. Depending upon someone's thoughts as to where the disease came from, syphilis was also known as the French, Italian, German and Polish disease
Spanish flu

A pandemic of influenza A (H1N1) in 1918-19 that caused the highest number of known flu deaths. More than 500,000 people died in the United States, and 20 million to 50 million people may have died worldwide. Many…
Spanish influenza

See: Spanish flu
Spasm

A brief, automatic jerking movement. A muscle spasm can be quite painful, with the muscle clenching tightly. A spasm of the coronary artery can cause angina. Spasms in various types of tissue may be caused by stress…
Spasm, coronary artery

See: Coronary artery spasm
Spasm, nictitating

Spasm of the eyelid with continuous winking. To nictitiate is to wink. 'Nictitate' and the older verb 'nictate' both come from the Latin word for winking, 'nictare.'
Spasmodic dysphonia

A voice disorder caused by involuntary movements of one or more muscles of the larynx or voice box. People who have spasmodic dysphonia may have occasional difficulty saying a word or two or they may experience…
Spasms, infantile

See: Infantile spasms