Medical-dictionary.cc

What does the word disease mean?

• Any deviation from health presenting fairly well-marked and regular symptoms and having a definite and characteristic etiological or pathological character. D. is a generic term, usually restricted, however, to the more serious perversions of health; affection has special reference to the part or organ which is at fault; disorder denotes derangement of function, especially a transitory one; illness and sickness have special reference to the sensations or symptoms, and are applied to the person suffering from the disease. Ds are classed according to( A) nature, as Constitutional( or General or Systemic), which originate in some altered state of the whole system, and more or less affect the whole body; and Local( or Topical), which originate in and remain confined to one part. ( B) origin; as Idiopathic( or Primary), when not due to other as; Secondary, when due to another d., and occurring either as a symptom( Symptomatic d.) or as a sequela; and Intercurrent or Complicating, when occurring along with another d., whether due to it or not. ( C) mode of origin; as Zymotic, due to fermentative action( i. e., to morbid germs and their ptomaines); Specific, due to a special characteristic morbific agency, whether zymotic or not. ( D) method of generation and transmission as Infectious d., Contagious d., etc. ( E) exciting cause; as Occupation due to the patients mode of living; d’s, due to sexual intercourse; Filth d’s, due to dirt and overcrowding; Miasmatic( or Paludal or Malarial) d’s; Parasitic d’s. ( F) nature of the change produced, as Functional d., in which there is alteration of function without alteration of structure; Nutritional d., in which there is alteration of function and nutrition without visible lesions although lesions too minute to be seen probably exist; Structural d., in which there are changes or structure visible with the micro­scope; and Organic( or Coarse) d., in which there are lesions visible to the naked eye. ( G) nature of the pathological process; as Congestive d., Inflammatory d. ( H) site of the lesion, as Focal d., in which the lesion occupies a circumscribed spot; Disseminated d., in which there are multiple circumscribed lesions; Diffuse d., in which the lesion is uncircumscribed; System d., in which the lesion occupies a nerve-tract, making up a special system; Parenchymatous d., in which the parenchyma of an organ is affected; Interstitial d., in which the interstitial tissue of an organ is attacked. ( I) organ or set of organs affected; as Respiratory d’s Circulatory d’s, Digestive( or Chylopoietic), Assimilative, Haematopoietic, Genito-urinary( Sexual), Locomotor, Nervous, and Psychic( or Mental) d’s. ( K) course; as Acute, Sub­acute, and Chronic. Specially-named ds( L) are Addisons( Bronzed-skin d.), Base­dows( or Graves), etc., see Addisons d., etc.

Each person working in the medical industry sometimes needs to know how to define a word from medical terminology. For example - how to explain disease? Here you can see the medical definition for disease. Medical-dictionary.cc is your online dictionary, full of medical definitions.