Costochondritis Glossary of Terms

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Abdomen: The belly, that part of the body that contains all of the structures between the...

Acetaminophen: A nonaspirin pain reliever or analgesic. Acetaminophen may be given alone t...

Anesthetic: A substance that causes lack of feeling or awareness, dulling pain to permit s...

Ankylosing: Having a tendency to stiffen and fuse together.

Ankylosing spondylitis: A form of chronic inflammation of the spine and the sacroiliac joi...

Anxiety: A feeling of apprehension and fear, characterized by physical symptoms such as pa...

Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint. When joints are inflamed they can develop stiffness, w...

Back pain: Pain felt in the low or upper back. Causes of pain in the low and upper back in...

Bacterial: Of or pertaining to bacteria, as in a bacterial lung infection.

Belly: That part of the body that contains all of the structures between the chest and t...

Belly pain: Pain in the abdomen. See: Abdominal pain.

Board certified: In medicine, a description for a physician who has taken and passed a med...

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

Cartilage: Firm, rubbery tissue that cushions bones at joints. A flexible kind of cartilag...

Cell: The basic structural and functional unit of any living thing. Each cell is a small c...

Chest: The area of the body located between the neck and the abdomen. The chest contains t...

Chest pain: Pain in the chest that can be a result of many things, including angina, heart...

Chest X-ray: A type of X-ray commonly used to detect abnormalities in the lungs. A chest X...

Chronic: In medicine, lasting a long time. A chronic condition is one that lasts 3 months ...

Consultant: An individual to whom one refers for expert advice or services. The use of con...

Costochondritis: Inflammation and swelling of the cartilage of the chest wall, usually inv...

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

Discharge: 1.The flow of fluid from part of the body, such as from the nose or vag...

ECG: Electrocardiogram.

Emergency department: The department of a hospital responsible for the provision of medica...

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

Fibromyalgia: A disease characterized by chronic pain, stiffness, and tenderness of muscle...

Fungal: Pertaining to a fungus. For example, a fungal skin infection.

Gallium: A rare metal with the atomic weight 69. There are several isotopic forms of galli...

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

Heart attack: The death of heart muscle due to the loss of blood supply. The loss of bloo...

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

Ibuprofen: A nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is commonly used to treat pa...

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 ...

Internal medicine: The medical specialty dedicated to the diagnosis and medical treatment ...

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...

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

Operation: In medicine, a surgical procedure. Many operations are named after persons. The...

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

Pediatric: Pertaining to children.

Pharmacy: A location where prescription medications are sold. A pharmacy is constantly sup...

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

Pneumonia: Inflammation of one or both lungs, with dense areas of lung inflammation. Pneum...

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Psoriatic arthritis: Joint inflammation that is associated with psoriasis. Psoriatic arthr...

Pus: A thick, whitish-yellow fluid that results from the accumulation of white blood cells...

Radiate: To spread out from a central area. For example, sciatic pain may radiate outward ...

Radioactive: Emitting energy waves due to decaying atomic nuclei. Radioactive substances a...

Recurrence: The return of a sign, symptom, or disease after a remission. The reappearance ...

Respiratory: Having to do with respiration.

Rheumatology: A subspecialty of internal medicine that involves the nonsurgical evaluation...

Rib: One of the 12 paired arches of bone that form the skeletal structure of the chest wal...

Rib cage: The structure formed by the thoracic vertebrae and ribs, the sternum (breastbone...

Rule out: Term used in medicine, meaning to eliminate or exclude something from considera...

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

Sore: 1. (adjective) A popular term for painful, such as a sore throat. 2. (...

Spondylitis: Inflammation of one or more of the vertebrae of the spine. Diffuse inflammati...

Sternum: The long flat bone in the upper middle of the front of the chest. The sternum art...

Steroid: One of a large group of chemical substances classified by a specific carbon struc...

Stomach: The digestive organ that is located in the upper abdomen, under the ribs. The upp...

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

Sweating: The act of secreting fluid from the skin by the sweat (sudoriferous) glands. The...

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

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

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

Tylenol: See: Acetaminophen.

Upper respiratory infection: An infection of the upper part of the respiratory system whic...

Viral: Of or pertaining to a virus. For example, if a person has a viral rash, the rash wa...

Viral infection: Infection caused by the presence of a virus in the body. Depending on...

White blood cell: One of the cells the body makes to help fight infections. There are seve...

White blood cell count (leukocyte count): The number of white blood cells (WBCs) in the b...

X-ray: High-energy radiation with waves shorter than those of visible light. X-ray is used...