Medical terms - Letter S (page 23) | MedicalVocabulary.org

Suboxone

Brand name for buprenorphine in combination with naloxone
Subq

Abbreviation for subcutaneous. Subcutaneous means under the skin. It implies just under the skin. With a subcutaneous injection, a needle is inserted just under the skin. A drug (for example, insulin) can then be…
Subscapular

Under the scapula, like the subscapularis muscle, which originates beneath the scapula.
Subscapularis muscle

>The subscapularis muscle; >The supraspinatus muscle, which is responsible for elevating the arm and moving it away from the body; >The infraspinatus muscle, which assists the lifting of the arm during turning the arm…
Substance

1. Material with particular features, as a pressor substance.2. The material that makes up an organ or structure. Also known in medicine as the substantia.3. A psychoactive drug as, for example, in substance abuse
Substance abuse

>A. A maladaptive pattern of substance use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress, as manifested by one (or more) of the following, occurring within a 12-month period:>Recurrent substance use resulting…
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services

Nistration: A part of the U.S. Public Health Service, SAMHSA works to improve the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment, and mental health services. Provides funding through block…
Substance, pressor

See: Pressor substance
Subtelomeric

Below the telomere, the end of a chromosome. For example, it has been reported that subtle subtelomeric rearrangements of the DNA are responsible for a significant proportion of unexplained cases of moderate to severe…
Subtotal hysterectomy

Hysterectomy: The uterus is surgically removed but the cervix is left is left in place. Also called a partial hysterectomy
Subungual onychomycosis, proximal white

The rarest form of fungus infection of the finger or toenail. (Fungus infection of the finger or toenail is also called onychomycosis.) The infection begins in the nail fold (the portion of the nail opposite the tip of…
Subutex

Brand name for buprenorphine
Subway diet:

The Subway diet is a weight loss plan popularized in 2004 by Jared Fogle, who claims that he lost over 245 pounds in one year by eating sandwiches from the Subway chain. Fogle replaced his 10,000 calorie per day food…
Succenturiate

In anatomy 'succenturiate' means substituting for or accessory to an organ. For example, see Succenturiate placenta. Succenturiate placenta: An extra placenta separate from the main placenta. In anatomy 'succenturiate'…
Succenturiate placenta

An extra placenta separate from the main placenta. In anatomy 'succenturiate' means substituting for or accessory to an organ. In this case, a succenturiate placenta is an accessory placenta
Succumb

To lose the will to oppose something or to give up and accept something that you first opposed. In the context of illness, to succumb to an illness is to stop opposing it, to no longer battle it, but to die from it…
Suction-assisted lipectomy

Another name for liposuction, the surgical removal of fat deposits from specific parts of the body, the most common being the abdomen (the 'tummy'), buttocks ('behind'), hips, thighs and knees, chin, upper arms, back…
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): The sudden and unexpected death of a baby with no known illness, typically affecting sleeping infants between the ages of two weeks to six months. Infants with a brother or sister…
Sudden infant death with dysgenesis of testes

Abbreviated SIDDT. For more, see: SIDDT
Sudoriferous gland

The sudoriferous (sweat) glands are small tubular structures situated within and under the skin (in the subcutaneous tissue). They discharge sweat by tiny openings in the surface of the skin. The sweat is a transparent…
Sugar Busters diet

The Sugar Busters diet is a weight loss plan based upon restriction of sugar intake. The diet is based upon the concept that sugar consumption leads to insulin release, which some experts believe leads to weight gain…
Suicidal

Pertaining to suicide. the taking of ones own life. As in a suicidal gesture, suicidal thought, or suicidal act. An 'online lifeline for suicidal undergrads' may help prevent college students from committing suicide
Suicide

Suicide: The act of causing ones own death. Suicide may be positive or negative and it may be direct or indirect. Suicide is a positive act when one takes ones own life. Suicide is a negative act when one does not do…
Suicide and sexual orientation

High rates of suicide have consistently been reported among homosexuals, particularly among adolescents and young adults. A 1989 report concluded that 'gay youth are 2 to 3 times more likely to attempt suicide than…
Suicide gene

A gene whose expression in a cell is lethal for that cell. Suicide genes form the basis of a strategy for making cancer cells more vulnerable, more sensitive to chemotherapy. The approach has been to attach parts of…
Suicide prevention

Diminishing the risk of suicide. It may not be possible to eliminate entirely the risk of suicide but it is possible to reduce this risk. For example, the suicide rate among US Air Force personnel fell precipitously…
Suicide, assisted

See: Assisted suicide
Suicide, physician-assisted

See: Physician-assisted suicide
Sulci

The plural of sulcus
Sulcus

A groove, crevice, or furrow. In medicine, there are many sulci (plural of sulcus) as, for example, the superior pulmonary sulcus. Sulcus is the Latin for groove, furrow, or trench
Sulfa drug

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…
Sulfite sensitivity

Adverse reactions of an allergic nature to sulfites. Sulfites occur in fermentation and also occur naturally in a number of foods and beverages including wine. Sulfites are used for their preservative properties…
Sulfonamides

The sulfa-related group of antibiotics, which are used to treat bacterial infection and some fungal infections. The sulfonamide family includes sulfadiazine, sulfamethizole (brand name: Thiosulfil Forte)…
Sulfonylurea

A class of oral hypoglycemic agents (pills and capsules taken to lower the level of blood glucose) by people with type 2 diabetes. The sulfonylureas increase the secretion of insulin by the pancreas. There are two…
Sulfonylurea sensitivity

Sensitivity to the hypoglycemic effects of the oral hypoglycemic agents in the sulfonylurea class
Sulphonylurea

A triptan drug for the treatment of migraine. Marketed under the brand name Imitrex.
Sumatriptan

Sumatriptan: A triptan drug for the treatment of migraine. Marketed under the brand name Imitrex.
Summer cold

A popular term for hay fever. Although the symptoms of a 'summer cold' may be similar to those of a real cold, the term 'summer cold' is a misnomer. Unlike a real cold, it is not caused by a virus but by allergy. It is…
Sumycin

See: Tetracycline
Sun poisoning

1. A nonscientific term sometimes used to refer to the serious and even potentially fatal symptoms of severe sunburn and accompanying dehydration. When used in this sense, sun poisoning is a medical emergency. Symptoms…
Sun protection factor (SPF)

A number on a scale for rating sunscreens. SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor. SPF numbers on a package can range from as low as 2 to as high as 60. These numbers refer to the product's ability to screen or block out…
Sunburn

Sunburn is an inflammation of the skin that develops in response to exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun or from tanning beds and booths that emit UV radiation. Sunburn is manifested by reddened, painful…
Sundowning

Also known as Sundown Syndrome, a term used to refer to behavioral changes that often occur in the late afternoon or evening in people with Alzheimer's disease and similar conditions. The behavioral changes make take…
Sune K. Bergstrom

See: Bergstrüm, Sune K.
Sunscreen

A substance that blocks the effect of the sun's harmful rays. Using lotions that contain sunscreens can reduce the risk of skin cancer, including melanoma
Super spreader

A highly infectious person who spreads the agent of an infectious disease to many other people. The historic prototype of the super spreader was Typhoid Mary. The term has also been applied to some persons with SARS…
Super-

Prefix meaning meaning above, more than normal, or excessive. As in superaspirin, superbug, superjacent, supernumerary, supersize, supertaster. From the Latin preposition super meaning above. See also: Hyper-.
Superaspirin

A class of drugs that act in certain but not all ways like aspirin. Also known as Cox-2 inhibitors, these drugs selectively block a specific enzyme called Cox-2. Inhibiting this enzyme impedes the production of the…
Superbug

An informal term for a bacterium that has become resistant to antibiotics usually used to treat it, as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or any multiresistant bacterium. 'A drug-resistant superbug that…
Supercentenarian

Someone 110 years old or over (no upper limit). This term was coined in 1991. See also: Age by decade