Medical Terms Flashcards
Acute myocardial infarction (AMI)
a heart attack (sudden deprivation of circulating blood)
Agnosia
inability to interpret sensations and hence to recognize things, typically as a result of brain damage
alcohol substance abuse vs.
dependence definition
Use: Substance use is any consumption of alcohol or drugs. Something as commonplace as having a beer with friends during dinner is considered substance use.
Abuse: Substance abuse is when someone continues to use drugs or alcohol even when it causes problems, such as trouble with work, family, or their health. For instance, continuing to use drugs knowing you’ll be fired if you fail a drug test is a sign of abuse.
Dependence: Substance dependence is an addiction to alcohol or drugs. You may be unable to stop drinking or using drugs, and have physical withdrawal symptoms when you try to quit.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
ALS is a fatal motor neuron disease. It is characterized by progressive degeneration of nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain. ALS affects voluntary control of arms and legs, and leads to trouble breathing. Progresses in stages
Anorexia
an eating disorder characterized by restriction of food intake leading to low body weight, typically accompanied by intense fear of gaining weight and disturbed perception of body weight and image
Anxiety disorder
Anxiety disorders are conditions in which you have anxiety that does not go away and can get worse over time. The symptoms can interfere with daily activities such as job performance, schoolwork, and relationships.
Aphasia
Aphasia is an acquired communication disorder that results in loss of the ability to produce or understand language. Aphasia occurs when the language centers of the brain are damaged.
Apnea
A serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts, or gets very shallow.
Apraxia (receptive vs. expressive)
Apraxia of speech (AOS), also called verbal apraxia, is a speech sound disorder affecting an individual’s ability to translate conscious speech plans into motor plans
Ataxia
Ataxia is a neurological disorder that describes poor muscle control that causes clumsy voluntary movements. It may cause difficulty with walking and balance, hand coordination, speech and swallowing, and eye movements.
Attachment disorder
Attachment Disorders are psychiatric illnesses that can develop in young children who have problems in emotional attachments to others. RAD (reactive attachment disorder) and DSED (disinhibited social engagement disorder).
Attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD/ ADD)
Attention deficit disorder (ADD) has been historically defined as a genetic, biochemical disorder involving two neurotransmitters known to enhance attention processes within the brain.
ADHD/ADD includes a combination of persistent problems, such as difficulty sustaining attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behavior.
Types:
Inattentive Type
Hyperactive-Impulsive Type
Combined Type
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave. Although autism can be diagnosed at any age, it is described as a “developmental disorder” because symptoms generally appear in the first 2 years of life.
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder is a brain disorder that causes changes in a person’s mood, energy, and ability to function. People with bipolar disorder experience intense emotional states that typically occur during distinct periods of days to weeks, called mood episodes.
Borderline personality disorder (BPD)
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a mental health condition in which a person has long-term patterns of unstable or explosive emotions.
These inner experiences often result in impulsive actions, self-image issues, and chaotic relationships with other people.
Bulimia
Bulimia is an eating disorder in which a person has regular episodes of eating a very large amount of food (bingeing) during which the person feels a loss of control over their eating. The person then uses different ways, such as vomiting or laxatives (purging), to prevent weight gain.
Cerebral palsy (CP); know the types
Cerebral means having to do with the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles. CP is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that affects a person’s ability to control his or her muscles.
4 main types:
spastic cp - increased muscle tone causing awkward movement (diplegia/diparesis is legs)
(hemiplegia/hemiparesis is one side of body)
(quadriplegia/quadriparesis is all limbs, trunk, and face)
dyskinetic cp - uncontrollable movement, muscle tone can change (from too tight to too loose as quickly as within a single day) (includes other types: athetoid, choreoathetoid, and dystonic cerebral palsies)
ataxic cp - balance and coordination issues
mixed cp - more than one type together
Cerebrovascular accident (CVA)
A stroke happens when there is a loss of blood flow to part of the brain. Your brain cells cannot get the oxygen and nutrients they need from blood, and they start to die within a few minutes. This can cause lasting brain damage, long-term disability, or even death.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic inflammatory lung disease that causes obstructed airflow from the lungs. It’s typically caused by long-term exposure to irritating gases or particulate matter, most often from cigarette smoke. Symptoms include breathing difficulty, cough, mucus (sputum) production and wheezing.
congenital
A condition or trait present at birth. It may be the result of genetic or non-genetic factors.
Current procedural terminology (CPT)
is a medical code set that is used to report medical, surgical, and diagnostic procedures and services to entities such as physicians, health insurance companies and accreditation organizations.
Degenerative
(of a disease or symptom) characterized by progressive, often irreversible deterioration, and loss of function in the organs or tissues.
“degenerative diseases”
Developmental disability (DD)
Developmental disabilities are a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. About one in six children in the U.S. have one or more developmental disabilities or other developmental delays.
Dementia
a condition characterized by progressive or persistent loss of intellectual functioning, especially with impairment of memory and abstract thinking, and often with personality change, resulting from organic disease of the brain.
Depression
Depression (also known as major depression, major depressive disorder, or clinical depression) is a common but serious mood disorder. It causes severe symptoms that affect how a person feels, thinks, and handles daily activities, such as sleeping, eating, or working.
various types include:
- major depression
- persistent depressive disorder
- perinatal depression
- seasonal affective disorder
- depression with symptoms of psychosis
- part of the bipolar disorder
Depressive episode
defines a depressive episode as a period in one’s life of at least two weeks, during which they exhibit the requisite symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD).
Diplegia
refers to symmetrical paralysis, usually affecting either the arms or the legs. It’s the most common cause of paralysis in children, but can affect people of any age. Unlike other forms of paralysis, diplegia is highly unpredictable, and may get better, worse, or radically change with time.
(it is also a subtype of CP)
dissociation
separation of some aspects of mental functioning from conscious awareness, leading to a degree of mental dysfunction or to mental conditions including dissociative identity disorder.
Down’s Syndrome
Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused when abnormal cell division results in an extra full or partial copy of chromosome 21. This extra genetic material causes the developmental changes and physical features of Down syndrome.
Down syndrome varies in severity among individuals, causing lifelong intellectual disability and developmental delays. It’s the most common genetic chromosomal disorder and cause of learning disabilities in children. It also commonly causes other medical abnormalities, including heart and gastrointestinal disorders.
Dysarthria
Dysarthria occurs when the muscles you use for speech are weak or you have difficulty controlling them. Dysarthria often causes slurred or slow speech that can be difficult to understand.
Common causes of dysarthria include nervous system disorders and conditions that cause facial paralysis or tongue or throat muscle weakness. Certain medications also can cause dysarthria.
dyslexia
Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability of neurodevelopmental origin that mainly affects the ease with which a person reads, writes, and spells, typically recognized as a specific learning disorder in children.
- Phonological Dyslexia.
- Surface Dyslexia.
- Rapid Automatic Naming Dyslexia.
- Double Deficit Dyslexia
Dysphagia
difficulty or discomfort in swallowing, as a symptom of disease.
“progressive dysphagia”
dyspnea
“shortness of breath” - difficult or labored breathing.
dysregulation
abnormality or impairment in the regulation of a metabolic, physiological, or psychological process.
