Sickle Cell Disease 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 ...

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

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

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

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

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

Blood clots: Blood that has been converted from a liquid to a solid state. Also called a t...

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

Bone marrow transplantation: See: Bone marrow transplant.

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

Capillaries: Capillaries are the smallest of blood vessels. They serve to distribute oxyge...

Carbon dioxide: A gas which is the byproduct of cellular metabolism and which collects in ...

Cascade: A sequence of successive activation reactions involving enzymes (enzyme cascade) ...

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...

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

Cough: A rapid expulsion of air from the lungs, typically in order to clear the lung airwa...

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

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

Dehydration: Excessive loss of body water. Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract that ca...

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

Diarrhea: A common condition that involves unusually frequent and liquid bowel movements. ...

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

Family history: The family structure and relationships within the family, including inform...

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

Femur: The single bone in the thigh, which is the largest bone in the human body. Also kno...

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

Flu: Short for influenza. The flu is caused by viruses that infect the respiratory tract w...

Gene: The basic biological unit of heredity. A segment of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) need...

Genetic: Having to do with genes and genetic
information.

Genetic counseling: An educational counseling process for individuals and families who hav...

Hematologist: A physician who specializes in diagnosing and treating diseases of the blood...

Hemoglobin: The oxygen-carrying pigment and predominant protein in the red blood cells. He...

Hemoglobin S: The most common type of abnormal hemoglobin and the basis of sickle cell tr...

Humerus: The long bone in the upper arm that extends from the shoulder to the elbow.

Hypoxia: A lower-than-normal concentration of oxygen in arterial blood, as opposed to anox...

Icterus: Jaundice. At least one medical dictionary defines icterus as the presence of jaun...

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

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

Incidence: The frequency with which something, such as a disease or trait, appears in a pa...

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

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

Injury: Harm or hurt. To harm, hurt, or wound. The word injure may be in physical or emot...

Joint: The area where two bones are attached for the purpose of permitting body parts to m...

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

Leg: In popular usage, the part of the body from the top of the thigh down to the foot, an...

Lightheadedness: A feeling you are "going to faint." Lightheadedness is medically distinc...

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

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

Marrow: The bone marrow.

Medical history: 1. In clinical medicine, the patient's past and present which may ...

Molecule: The smallest unit of a substance that can exist alone and retain the character o...

Mutation: A permanent change, a structural alteration, in the DNA or RNA. In humans and m...

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

Neonatal: Pertaining to the newborn period, specifically the first 4 weeks after birth.

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

Outpatient: A patient who is not hospitalized, but instead comes to a physician?s office, ...

Oxygen: The odorless gas that is present in the air and necessary to maintain life. Oxygen...

Oxygenation: The addition of oxygen to any system, including the human body. Oxygenation m...

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

Palpitations: Unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. In ...

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

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

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

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

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

Priapism: Abnormally persistent erection of the penis in the absence of desire. Treatments...

Range of motion: The full movement potential of a joint, usually its range of flexion and ...

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

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

Red cells: Short for red blood cells, the oxygen/carbon dioxide carrying cells in blood. A...

Rehydration: The process of restoring lost water (dehydration) to the body tissues and flu...

Relapse: The return of signs and symptoms of a disease after a remission.

Retina: The retina is the nerve layer that lines the back of the eye, senses light, and c...

Retinal: Pertaining to the retina, the extraordinary layer of neurons (nerve cells) that ...

Retinal detachment: A separation of the retina from its connection at the back of the eye....

Retinopathy: Any disease of the retina, the light-sensitive membrane at the back of the ey...

Salmonella: A group of bacteria that cause typhoid fever and a number of other illnesses...

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

Shortness of breath: Difficulty in breathing. Medically referred to as dyspnea. Shortness ...

Sickle cell anemia: A genetic blood disease due to the presence of an abnormal form of hem...

Sickle cell disease: A genetic blood disorder caused by the presence of an abnormal form ...

Spinal tap: Also known as a lumbar puncture or "LP", a spinal tap is a procedure whereby ...

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

Stress: In a medical or biological context stress is a physical, mental, or emotional fact...

Stroke: The sudden death of brain cells due to lack of oxygen, caused by blockage of blood...

Subacute: Rather recent onset or somewhat rapid change. In contrast, acute indicates very ...

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

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

Tibia: The larger of the two long bones in the lower leg. The tibia is familiarly known as...

Transfusion: The transfer of blood or blood products from one person (the donor) into the ...

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

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