Ovarian Cysts Glossary of Terms

1. What's Causing Your Pelvic Pain Slideshow Pictures
2. Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) Slideshow Pictures
3. Ovarian Cancer Slideshow Pictures

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 ...

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

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

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

Assay: An assay is an analysis done to determine:

1. The presence of a substance an...

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

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

Birth control: Birth control is the use of any practices, methods, or devices to prevent p...

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

Bowel: The small and large intestine.

Breast cancer: Breast cancer is diagnosed with self- and physician-examination of the brea...

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

Cardiovascular: Relating to the circulatory system, which comprises the heart and blood ve...

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

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

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

Corpus: The body of the uterus.

Corpus luteum cyst: : This type of functional ovarian cyst occurs after an egg has been ...

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

Culdocentesis: The puncture and aspiration (withdrawal) of fluid from the rectouterine pou...

Cyst: A closed sac or capsule, usually filled with fluid or semisolid material.

Cystadenoma: A cystadenoma is a type of benign tumor that develops from ovarian tissue. T...

Cysts: Cysts are abnormal, closed sac-like structures within a tissue that contain a liqui...

Dermoid: Also called a dermoid cyst of the ovary, this is a bizarre tumor, usually benign,...

Diabetes: Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus. Diabetes mell...

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

Dizziness: Painless head discomfort with many possible causes including disturbances of ...

Ectopic: In the wrong place, out of place. For example, an ectopic kidney is a kidney that...

Ectopic pregnancy: A pregnancy that is not in the uterus. The fertilized egg settles and g...

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

Endocrine: Pertaining to hormones and the glands that make and secrete them into the blood...

Endometrial cancer: Cancer of the womb (the uterus ). Endometrial cancer occurs most often...

Endometrioid cyst: : Part of the condition known as endometriosis, this type of cyst is fo...

Endometrioma: : Part of the condition known as endometriosis. Endometrioma is a type of cy...

Endometriosis: The presence of tissue that normally grows inside the uterus (womb) in an ...

Endovaginal ultrasound: This type of imaging test is a special form of ultrasound develope...

Epithelial: Relating to the epithelium.

Estrogen: A female steroid hormone that is produced by the ovaries and, in lesser amounts,...

Fertility: The ability to conceive and bear children, the ability to become pregnant throu...

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

Fibroids: Fibroids are common, benign tumors of smooth muscle in the uterus (womb). Uterin...

Glucose: The simple sugar that is the chief source of energy. Glucose is found in the bloo...

Gonadotropin: Hormones that are secreted by the pituitary gland, and that affect the func...

Hemorrhagic: Pertaining to bleeding or the abnormal flow of blood.

Hemorrhagic cyst: : This type of functional cyst occurs when bleeding occurs within a cyst...

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

Hormone: A chemical substance produced in the body that controls and regulates the activit...

Hypothyroid: Deficiency of thyroid hormone which is normally made by the thyroid gland wh...

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

Implantation: The act of setting in firmly.

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 ...

Infertility: Diminished or absent ability to conceive and bear offspring. A couple is cons...

Insulin: A natural hormone made by the pancreas that controls the level of the sugar gluco...

Insulin resistance: The diminished ability of cells to respond to the action of insulin in...

Laparoscope: An instrument through which structures within the abdomen and pelvis can be s...

Laparoscopic: 1. Pertaining to the procedure of laparoscopy.
2. Pert...

Laparoscopy: A type of surgery in which small incisions are made in the abdominal wall thr...

Laparotomy: An operation to open the abdomen. For example, laparotomy is used to remove ca...

Low blood pressure: Any blood pressure that is below the normal expected for an individua...

Magnetic resonance imaging: A procedure that uses magnetism, radio waves, and a computer t...

Malignant: 1. Tending to be severe and become progressively worse, as in malignant ...

Menstrual: Pertaining to menstruation (the menses), as in last menstrual period, menstrua...

Menstrual cycle: The monthly cycle of changes in the ovaries and the lining of the uteru...

Menstruation: The periodic blood that flows as a discharge from the uterus. Also called me...

Metabolic: Relating to metabolism, the whole range of biochemical processes that occur wit...

Miscarriage: Inadvertent loss of a pregnancy before the fetus is viable. A considerable pr...

Mittelschmerz: Pain due to ovulation that usually occurs at the midpoint between the menst...

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.

Narcotic: 1. A drug that causes insensibility or stupor. A narcotic induces narcosi...

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

Ovarian: Of or pertaining to the ovary.

Ovarian cancer: A malignant tumor of the ovary, the egg sac in a female. Women who have a ...

Ovarian cyst: A fluid-filled sac in the ovary.

Ovary: The female gonad, one of a pair of reproductive glands in women. The ovaries are lo...

Ovulation: The release of the ripe egg (ovum) from the ovary. The egg is released when the...

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

PCOS: Polycystic ovary syndrome.

Pelvic: Having to do with the pelvis, the lower part of the abdomen, located between the h...

Pelvic exam: An examination of the organs of the female reproductive system.

Pelvic pain: : Pain perceived in the area of the pelvis, the lower part of the abdomen loc...

Pelvis: The lower part of the abdomen, located between the hip bones. Structures in the fe...

Physiologic: Something that is normal, that is due neither to anything pathologic nor sign...

Polycystic ovarian syndrome: Abbreviated PCOS. Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a condition ...

Polycystic ovary syndrome: Abbreviated PCOS. Polcystic ovary syndrome is a condition in wo...

Postmenopausal: After menopause, the period of time after a woman has experienced 12 conse...

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

Pregnant: The state of carrying a developing fetus within the body.

Prescription: A physician's order for the preparation and administration of a drug or dev...

Probe: (1) In surgery, a probe is a slender flexible rod with a blunt end used to e...

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

Resistance: Opposition to something, or the ability to withstand something. For example, s...

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

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

Serum: The clear liquid that can be separated from clotted blood. Serum differs from plas...

Shoulder: A structure made up of two main bones: the scapula (shoulder blade) and the hume...

Shoulder pain: Pain in the shoulder due to an injury or disease. The design of the shoulde...

Substance: 1. Material with particular features.
2. The material that...

Surgeon: A physician who treats disease, injury, or deformity via operative or manual meth...

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

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

Teratoma: A type of germ cell tumor that may contain several different types of tissue and...

Testosterone: A "male hormone" -- a sex hormone produced by the testes that encourages th...

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

Tubal pregnancy: A pregnancy that is not in the usual place within the uterus but is locat...

Tumor: An abnormal mass of tissue. Tumors are a classic sign of inflammation, and can be ...

Type 2 diabetes: See Diabetes, type 2.

Ultrasound: High-frequency sound waves. Ultra-sound waves can be bounced off tissues by us...

Uterine fibroids: Uterine fibroids are benign tumors of the uterus (the womb). They are th...

Uterus: A hollow, pear-shaped organ that is located in a woman's lower abdomen, between th...

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

Warfarin: An anticoagulant drug (brand names: Coumarin, Panwarfin, Sofarin) taken to prev...

Weight loss: Weight loss is a decrease in body weight resulting from either voluntary (die...