Epstein-Barr Virus Glossary of Terms

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

Abdominal: Relating to the abdomen, the belly, that part of the body that contains all of ...

Abdominal pain: Pain in the belly. Abdominal pain can be acute or chronic. It may reflect ...

Acquired: Not inherited, or present at birth (congenital), but developing after birth. For...

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

Acyclovir: (Brand name: Zovirax) One of a group of antiviral drugs that acts against the...

Adenovirus: One of a group of viruses that can cause infections of the lung, stomach, inte...

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

Antibody: An immunoglobulin, a specialized immune protein, produced because of the introdu...

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

Antiviral: An agent that kills a virus or that suppresses its ability to replicate and, he...

Asymptomatic: Without symptoms. For example, an asymptomatic infection is an infection wit...

Atypical: Unusual, or not fitting a single diagnostic
category.

Bone marrow: The soft blood-forming tissue that fills the cavities of bones and contains f...

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

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

Burkitt lymphoma: A type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that most often occurs in young peo...

Burkitt's lymphoma: See: Burkitt lymphoma.

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

Capsid: The protein coat of a virus. The term capsid came in 1960 from the French capside,...

Carcinoma: Cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line or cover body organs. Ex...

CDC: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the US agency charged with tracking a...

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

Chills: feelings of coldness accompanied by shivering. Chills may develop after exposure t...

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

Chronic fatigue syndrome: A debilitating and complex disorder characterized by profound fa...

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

DNA: Deoxyribonucleic acid. One of two types of molecules that encode genetic information...

EBV: Epstein-Barr virus.

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

Enlarged liver: A liver that is greater in size than normal. Enlarged liver is also known ...

Enlarged spleen: Splenomegaly, or an enlargement of the spleen. This condition can occur w...

Enzymes: Proteins that act as a catalysts in mediating and speeding a specific chemical re...

Epstein-Barr virus: A virus in the herpes family that is best known as the cause of infect...

Fatigue: A condition characterized by a lessened capacity for work and reduced efficiency ...

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

Genetic: Having to do with genes and genetic
information.

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. ...

Hemolysis: The destruction of red blood cells which leads to the release of hemoglobin fro...

Hepatitis: Inflammation of the liver, irrespective of the cause. Hepatitis is caused by a ...

Immune: Protected against infection, usually by the presence of antibodies.

Immune system: A complex system that is responsible for distinguishing a person from every...

Immunosuppressive: 1. Pertaining to immunosuppression, the suppression of the immun...

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

Infectious mononucleosis: A specific viral infection (with the Epstein-Barr virus) in whic...

Infiltrate: To penetrate. For example, a cancer may grow into, or infiltrate, surrounding ...

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

Jaundice: Yellow staining of the skin and sclerae (the whites of the eyes) by abnormally h...

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

Latent: Hidden, dormant, inactive.

Leukoplakia: A white spot or patch on the mucous membranes in the mouth (for instance, ins...

Liver: The largest solid organ in the body, situated in the upper part of the abdomen on t...

Liver disease: Liver disease refers to any disorder of the liver. The liver is a large org...

Lungs: The lungs are a pair of breathing organs located with the chest which remove carbon...

Lymph: The almost colorless fluid that travels through the lymphatic system, carrying cell...

Lymphocytosis: Having too many lymphocytes. Lymphocytosis may be a marker that infection o...

Lymphoma: A tumor of the lymphoid tissue. The major types of lymphoma are Hodgkin's diseas...

Lymphoproliferative: Referring to the proliferation of the bone marrow cells that give ris...

Marrow: The bone marrow.

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

Microscope: An optical instrument that augments the power of the eye to see small objects....

Mono: Popular name for infectious mononucleosis.

Mononucleosis: Infection with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV, human herpesvirus 4, HHV-4) in...

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

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

Neurological: Having to do with the nerves or the nervous system as, for example, a neurol...

Neurologist: A physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of th...

Nose: The external midline projection from the face. The purpose of the nose is to warm, c...

Organ: A relatively independent part of the body that carries out one or more special func...

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

Palate: The roof of the mouth. The front portion is bony (hard palate), and the back porti...

Penicillin: The most famous of all antibiotics, named for the fungal mold Penicillium n...

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

Petechiae: Pinpoint flat round red spots under the skin surface caused by intradermal hemo...

Plaque: 1. An semi-hardened accumulation of substances from fluids that bathe an a...

Platelet: An irregular, disc-shaped element in the blood that assists in blood clotting....

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...

Rash: Breaking out (eruption) of the skin. A rash can be caused by an underlying medical c...

Recur: To occur again; to return. For example, a symptom, sign, or disease can recur.

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

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

Saliva: a watery secretion in the mouth produced by the salivary glands that aids in the d...

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

Sore throat: Pain in the throat. Sore throat may be caused by many different causes, inclu...

Spleen: An organ that is located in the upper-left part of the abdomen, not far from the s...

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

Throat: The throat is the anterior (front) portion of the neck beginning at the back of th...

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

Tonsils: Small masses of lymphoid tissue at the back and on both sides of the throat.

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

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

Virus: A microorganism that is smaller than a bacterium that cannot grow or reproduce apar...

Viruses: Small living particles that can infect cells and change how the cells function. I...

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

X-linked: A gene on the X chromosome that is located on the X chromosome. An X-linked diso...