Aneurysm Glossary of Terms

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Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Adjacent: Lying nearby. Related terms include superjacent, subjacent, and circumjacent. Fr...

Airway: The path that air follows to get into and out of the lungs. The mouth and nose are...

Analysis: In psychology, a term for conversation-based therapeutic processes used to gain ...

Anatomy: The study of human or animal form, by observation or examination of the living be...

Anemia: The condition of having a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells or quantity ...

Aneurysm: A localized widening (dilatation) of an artery, a vein, or the heart. At the poi...

Angiography: A procedure performed to view blood vessels after injecting them with a radio...

Aorta: The largest artery in the body, the aorta arises from the left ventricle of the he...

Artery: A vessel that carries blood high in oxygen content away from the heart to the far...

Autopsy: A postmortem examination. Also known as necropsy.

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

Berry aneurysm: A small aneurysm that looks like a berry and classically occurs at the poi...

Blood pressure: The blood pressure is the pressure of the blood within the arteries. It is...

Brain: The portion of the central nervous system that is located within the skull. It func...

Brain aneurysm: An aneurysm of a blood vessel in the brain, usually due to a defect in the...

Brain swelling: See: Cerebral edema.

Breathing: The process of respiration, during which air is inhaled into the lungs through ...

Calcium: A mineral found mainly in the hard part of bones, where it is stored. Calcium is ...

Calcium channel blocker: A drug that blocks the entry of calcium into the muscle cells of ...

Cancer: An abnormal growth of cells which tend to proliferate in an uncontrolled way and, ...

Carotid: Pertaining to the carotid artery and the area near that key artery, which is loca...

Catheter: A thin, flexible tube.

Cerebral: Of or pertaining to the cerebrum or the brain.

Cerebral aneurysm: A localized widening of a vessel within the brain. See: Berry aneurysm...

Cerebrospinal fluid: A watery fluid that is continuously produced and absorbed and that fl...

Circle of Willis: A critical arterial circle at the base of the brain. The circle of Willi...

Circulation: In medicine, the movement of fluid through the body in a regular or circuitou...

Coarctation: A narrowing, stricture, or constriction of an artery. The sides of the vessel...

Coarctation of the aorta: Congenital constriction of the aorta that impedes the flow of bl...

Collagen: The principal protein of the skin, tendons, cartilage, bone, and connective tiss...

Coma: A state of deep, unarousable unconsciousness. A coma may occur as a result of head t...

Complication: In medicine, an unanticipated problem that arises following, and is a result...

Compression: 1. The act of pressing together. As in a compression fracture, nerve c...

Congenital: A condition that is present at birth, whether or not it is inherited.

Contrast: Short for "contrast media." Contrast media are X-ray dyes used to provide contra...

Cranial: 1. Pertaining to the cranium or skull. 2. Toward the head. As oppo...

Cranial nerves: The nerves of the brain, which emerge from or enter the skull (the cranium...

CT scan: Computerized tomography scan. Pictures of structures within the body created by a...

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

EEG: Electroencephalogram.

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: A heritable disorder of connective tissue that is characterized by...

Electrolyte: A substance that dissociates into ions in solution and acquires the capacity ...

Encephalitis: Inflammation of the brain, which may be caused by a bacterium, a virus, or a...

Family physician: A physician who is educated and trained in family practice.

Fever: Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 degr...

Flexion: The process of bending, or the state of being bent. For example, flexion of the f...

Fluoroscopy: An x-ray procedure that makes it possible to see internal organs in motion.

Headache: A pain in the head with the pain being above the eyes or the ears, behind the he...

Heart: The muscle that pumps blood received from veins into arteries throughout the body. ...

Heart disease: Any disorder that affects the heart. Sometimes the term "heart disease" is ...

Heart rate: The number of heartbeats per unit of time, usually per minute. The heart rate ...

Hemorrhage: Bleeding or the abnormal flow of blood.

High blood pressure: A repeatedly elevated blood pressure exceeding 140 over 90 mmHg. Chro...

Hypertension: High blood pressure, defined as a repeatedly elevated blood pressure exceedi...

Indicate: In medicine, to make a treatment or procedure advisable because of a particular ...

Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, an...

Inflammation: A localized reaction that produces redness, warmth, swelling, and pain as a ...

Interventional: Pertaining to the act of intervening, interfering or interceding with the ...

Intracranial: Within the cranium, the bony dome that houses and protects the brain.

Involuntary: Done other than in accordance with the conscious will of the individual. The ...

Kidney: One of a pair of organs located in the right and left side of the abdomen. The kid...

Laboratory: A place for doing tests and research procedures, and for preparing chemicals a...

Lethargy: Abnormal drowsiness, stupor.

Lumbar: Referring to the five lumbar vertebrae, the disks below them, and the correspondin...

Lumbar puncture: A procedure in which cerebrospinal fluid is removed from the spinal canal...

Lupus: A chronic inflammatory disease that is caused by autoimmunity. Patients with lupus ...

Marfan syndrome: An inherited disorder of connective tissue that is characterized by abnor...

Meninges: The three membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord (singular: meninx).

Meningitis: Inflammation of the meninges, the three membranes that envelop the brain and t...

Migraine: Usually, periodic attacks of headaches on one or both sides of the head. These ...

Motor: Something that produces or refers to motion. For example, a motor neuron is a nerve...

Mouth: 1. The upper opening of the digestive tract, beginning with the lips and con...

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.

Multifactorial: In medicine, referring to multiple factors in heredity or disease. For exa...

Nausea: Stomach queasiness, the urge to vomit. Nausea can be brought on by many causes, in...

Neck: The part of the body joining the head to the shoulders. Also, any narrow or constric...

Neck pain: Neck pain is the sensation of discomfort in the neck area. Neck pain can result...

Nerve: A bundle of fibers that uses electrical and chemical signals to transmit sensory an...

Neurofibromatosis: A genetic disorder of the nervous system that primarily affects the dev...

Onset: In medicine, the first appearance of the signs or symptoms of an illness as, for ex...

Optic: Having to do with vision.

Optic nerve: The optic nerve connects the eye to the brain. The optic nerve carries the...

Outpatient: A patient who is not hospitalized, but instead comes to a physician?s office, ...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Peripheral: Situated away from the center, as opposed to centrally located.

Peripheral artery disease: A form of peripheral vascular disease in which there is partial...

Photophobia: Painful oversensitivity to light. For example, photophobia is often seen in m...

Physical therapy: A branch of rehabilitative health that uses specially designed exercises...

Radiology: The medical specialty concerned with radiation for the diagnosis and treatment ...

Recurrent: Appearing or occurring again. For example, a recurrent fever is a fever that ha...

Red blood cells: The blood cells that carry oxygen. Red cells contain hemoglobin and it is...

Residual: Something left behind. With residual disease, the disease has not been eradicate...

Resuscitation: The procedure of restoring to life, as in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CP...

Rupture: A break or tear in any organ (such as the spleen) or soft tissue (such as the ach...

Saccular: Being like a small pouch. For example, the alveolar saccules are little air pouc...

Saccular aneurysm: An aneurysm that resembles a small sack. A berry aneurysm is typically ...

Scan: As a noun, the data or image obtained from the examination of organs or regions of...

Seizure: Uncontrolled electrical activity in the brain, which may produce a physical conv...

Sensation: In medicine and physiology, sensation refers to the registration of an incoming...

Sensitivity: 1. In psychology, the quality of being sensitive. As, for example, sen...

Skull: The skull is a collection of bones which encase the brain and give form to the hea...

Speech therapy: The treatment of speech and communication disorders. The approach used d...

Spinal cord: The major column of nerve tissue that is connected to the brain and lies with...

Spine: 1) The column of bone known as the vertebral column, which surrounds and protects ...

Stroke: The sudden death of brain cells due to lack of oxygen, caused by blockage of blood...

Subarachnoid: Literally, beneath the arachnoid, the middle of three membranes that cover t...

Subarachnoid hemorrhage: A bleeding into the subarachnoid, the space between the arachnoid...

Surgery: The branch of medicine that employs operations in the treatment of disease or inj...

Symptom: Any subjective evidence of disease. In contrast, a sign is objective. Blood comin...

Syndrome: A combination of symptoms and signs that together represent a disease process.

Systemic: Affecting the entire body. A systemic disease such as diabetes can affect the wh...

Systemic lupus erythematosus: A chronic inflammatory condition caused by an autoimmune di...

Therapy: The treatment of disease. Therapy is synonymous with treatment.

Tongue: A strong muscle that is anchored to the floor of the mouth. The tongue is covered ...

Vascular: Relating to blood vessels. For example, the vascular system in the body includes...

Vertebrae: The preferred plural of vertebra. (The alternate plural is vertebras.) See also...

Vertigo: Aside from being the name of a classic 1958 Alfred Hitchcock film (with Jimmy St...

Vessel: A tube in the body that carries fluids. Examples of vessels are blood vessels and ...

Vital: Necessary to maintain life. For example, breathing is a vital function.