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May 25, 2013


Enlarged Prostate Glossary of Terms

The following are health and medical definitions of terms that appear in the Enlarged Prostate article.

Ablation: Removal or excision. Ablation is usually carried out surgically. For example, su...

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Acute: Of abrupt onset, in reference to a disease. Acute often also connotes an illness th...

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Aging: The process of becoming older, a process that is genetically determined and environ...

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Alpha blocker: A drug that blocks receptors in arteries and smooth muscle. This action rel...

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

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Antigen: A substance that the immune system perceives as being foreign or dangerous. The b...

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

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Benign: Not malignant. A benign tumor is one that does not invade surrounding tissue or sp...

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Benign prostatic hyperplasia: A common, noncancerous enlargement of the prostate gland. Th...

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Bladder: A hollow organ in the lower abdomen that stores urine. The kidneys filter waste f...

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Blood in the urine: Blood that appears in the urine. Also known as hematuria. Gross hematu...

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BPH: Benign prostatic hyperplasia, benign prostatic hypertrophy.

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

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

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Coagulation: In medicine, the clotting of blood. The process by which the blood clots to f...

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Cuts: Severed skin. Washing a cut or scrape with soap and water and keeping it clean and d...

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

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Digital rectal exam: A routine exam in which a physician inserts a lubricated, gloved fing...

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

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Estrogens: Female hormones produced by the ovaries. Estrogen deficiency can lead to osteop...

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Exacerbate: To make worse. For example, smoking may exacerbate lung disease.

Genital: Pertaining to the external and/or internal organs of reproduction.

Gland: A group of cells that secrete a substance for use in the body. For example, the thy...

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Hyperplasia: An increase in the number of normal cells in a tissue or an organ. Hyperplasi...

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Incision: A cut through skin or other tissue performed by a health care professional.

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

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

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Interstitial: Pertaining to being between things, especially between things that are norma...

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

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Laser: A powerful beam of light that is used in some types of surgery to cut or destroy ti...

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Laser coagulation: The coagulation (clotting) of tissue using a laser. A coagulation laser...

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Muscle: Muscle is the tissue of the body which primarily functions as a source of power. T...

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Obstruction: Blockage of a passageway. See, for example: Airway obstruction; Intestinal o...

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

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Orgasm: A series of muscle contractions in the genital region that is accompanied by sudde...

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

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Penis: The external male sex organ. The penis contains two chambers, the corpora cavernosa...

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

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Prostate: A gland within the male reproductive system that is located just below the blad...

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Prostate cancer: A malignant tumor of the prostate, the gland that produces some of the co...

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Prostate enlargement: Most prostatic enlargement is due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (B...

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Prostate gland: A gland in the male reproductive system that is located just below the bla...

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PSA: Prostate specific antigen. A test for PSA may be used to screen for cancer of the p...

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Quality of life: The patient's ability to enjoy normal life activities. Quality of life is...

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Rectum: The last 6 to 8 inches of the large intestine. The rectum stores solid waste until...

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Resection: Surgical removal of part of an organ.

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

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Semen: The fluid that is released through the penis during orgasm. Semen is made up of flu...

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Sperm: A sperm is the male "gamete" or sex cell. It combines with the female &qu...

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Stage: As regards cancer, the extent of a cancer, especially whether the disease has spre...

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

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Testicles: The testicles (also called testes or gonads) are the male sex glands. They are ...

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Transurethral resection: Surgery to remove tissue using a special instrument inserted thro...

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Urethra: The tube that leads from the bladder and transports and discharges urine outside ...

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Urinalysis: A test that is done in order to analyze urine. Because toxins and excess fluid...

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Urinary: Having to do with the function or anatomy of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, or ur...

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Urinary tract: The organs of the body that produce, store, and discharge urine. These orga...

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Urine: Liquid waste produced by the kidneys. Urine is a clear, transparent fluid that norm...

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Urologist: A physician who specializes in diseases of the urinary organs in females and th...

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Watchful waiting: Closely monitoring a patient's condition but withholding therapy until t...

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