Genital Warts (HPV Infection) Glossary of Terms

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

Acetic acid: The acid most commonly associated with vinegar. Acetic acid is a two-carbon c...

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

Anesthesia: Loss of feeling or awareness, as when an anesthetic is administered before sur...

Biopsy: The removal of a sample of tissue for examination under a microscope to check for ...

Bumps: The raised area of a bump or bruise results from blood leaking from these injured b...

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

Cervical: Having to do with any kind of neck, including the neck on which the head is perc...

Cervical cancer: Cancer of the entrance to the womb (uterus). The cervix is the lower, na...

Cervix: The cervix is the lower, narrow part of the uterus (womb). The uterus, a hollow, ...

Colposcope: A lighted magnifying instrument used by a gynecologist to examine the tissues ...

Colposcopy: A procedure in which a lighted magnifying instrument called a colposcope (or v...

Condyloma: Wartlike growths around the anus, vulva, or glans penis. There are three major ...

Cryoprobe: A surgical probe, a long slender pointed surgical instrument, used to apply ext...

Cryotherapy: Literally, "cold therapy." Cryotherapy, sometimes referred to as cryosurgery,...

Cure: 1. To heal, to make well, to restore to good health. 2. A time withou...

Dermatologist: A physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of skin problems...

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...

Electrodesiccation: Use of an electric current to destroy cancerous tissue and control ble...

Excision: 1. Surgical removal, as in the excision of a tumor. 2. The remov...

FDA: Food and Drug Administration.

Foreskin: The fold of skin which covers the head (the glans) of the penis. Also called th...

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

Hair follicle: A sac from which a hair grows and into which the sebaceous (oil) glands ope...

HPV: Human papillomavirus.

Human papillomavirus: HPV. A family of over 100 viruses including those which cause warts ...

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

Interferon: A naturally occurring substance that interferes with the ability of viruses t...

Itching: An uncomfortable sensation in the skin that feels as if something is crawling on ...

Labia: Lips, the fleshy folds that surround the opening of the mouth (oral labia) or the v...

Labia minora: The smaller (minor) inside pair of labia (lips) of the vulva (the female ex...

Labial: Pertaining to a lip.

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

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

Lesion: An area of abnormal tissue change. Lesions vary in severity from harmless to serio...

Liquid nitrogen: Nitrogen in a liquid state. Liquid nitrogen is supercool -- about 200 deg...

Microscopic: So small it cannot be seen without the aid of microscope. As opposed to macro...

Nitrogen: Element number 7, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is biologically impo...

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

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

Pap Smear: A screening test for cervical cancer based on the examination of cells under th...

Papillomatosis: A disorder that is characterized by the growth of numerous papillomas (war...

Penile: Of or pertaining to the penis.

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

Pregnancy: The state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body. Thi...

Premalignant: Pertaining to tissue that is not yet malignant but is poised to become malig...

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

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

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis: Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis involves the g...

Respiratory: Having to do with respiration.

Scrotum: The pouch of skin that contains the testes, epididymides, and lower portions of t...

Sexually transmitted disease: Any disease transmitted by sexual contact; caused by microo...

STD: Sexually transmitted disease.

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

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

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

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

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

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

Vagina: The muscular canal that extends from the cervix to the outside of the body. It is ...

Vaginal discharge: Vaginal discharge is a fluid produced by glands in the vaginal wall and...

Vaginal opening: The exterior opening to the vagina, the muscular canal that extends from ...

Venereal: Having to do with sexual contact. For example, a venereal disease is a sexually ...

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...

Wart: A local growth of the outer layer of the skin (the epidermis) caused by a virus. Th...