Vomiting and Nausea Glossary of Terms

1. Take the Tummy Trouble Quiz
2. Digestive Disease Myths Slideshow Pictures
3. Heartburn? Foods to Eat, Foods to Avoid Slideshow

Acupressure: The application of pressure on specific points on the body to control symptom...

Allergy: A misguided reaction to foreign substances by the immune system, the body system ...

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

Anorexia: An eating disorder characterized by markedly reduced appetite or total aversion...

Anxiety: A feeling of apprehension and fear, characterized by physical symptoms such as pa...

Appendicitis: Inflammation of the appendix, usually associated with infection of the appen...

Aromatherapy: A form of alternative medicine in which essential oils or other scents are i...

Belly: That part of the body that contains all of the structures between the chest and t...

Belly pain: Pain in the abdomen. See: Abdominal pain.

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 ...

Bulimia: Also called bulimia nervosa. An eating disorder characterized by episodes of secr...

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

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

Chemotherapy: 1. In the original sense, a chemical that binds to and specifically k...

Concussion: A traumatic injury to soft tissue, usually the brain, as a result of a violent...

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...

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 ...

Digestive system: The system of organs responsible for getting food into and out of the bo...

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

Dry mouth: The condition of not having enough saliva to keep the mouth wet. This is due to...

Electrolyte: A substance that dissociates into ions in solution and acquires the capacity ...

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

Esophagus: The tube that connects the pharynx (throat) with the stomach. The esophagus lie...

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

Food poisoning: A common flu-like illness typically characterized by nausea, vomiting and...

Gallbladder: A pear-shaped organ located below the liver that stores the bile secreted by ...

Gastrointestinal: Adjective referring collectively to the stomach and small and large inte...

Gastrointestinal tract: The stomach and intestines. Abbreviated GI tract.

Ginger: Ginger, the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, has been used as medicine in...

Head injury: Damage to any of the structures of the head as a result of trauma. While the ...

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. ...

Heart disease: Any disorder that affects the heart. Sometimes the term "heart disease" is ...

Homeopathy: Founded in the 19th century, a practice that is based on the concept that dise...

Hydrocephalus: Hydrocephalus is an abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the v...

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...

Involuntary: Done other than in accordance with the conscious will of the individual. The ...

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

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

Lips: Aside from the lips of the mouth, there are two pairs of lips at the entrance to the...

Liter: A metric measure of capacity that is equal to the volume of 1 kilogram of water at ...

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...

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

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

Migraine: Usually, periodic attacks of headaches on one or both sides of the head. These ...

Morning sickness: Nausea and vomiting of pregnancy.

Motion sickness: A disorder of the sense of balance and equilibrium and, hence, the sense ...

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

Mucus: A thick fluid that is produced by the lining of some organs of the body.

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

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

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

Onset: In medicine, the first appearance of the signs or symptoms of an illness as, for ex...

Ounce: A measure of weight equal to 1/16^th of a pound or, metrically, 28.35 gra...

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

Pediatric: Pertaining to children.

Peristalsis: The rippling motion of muscles in the digestive tract. In the stomach, this m...

Poisoning: Taking a substance that is injurious to health or can cause death. Poisoning i...

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

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

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

Queasy: A feeling of nausea.

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

Reflex: An involuntary reaction. For example, the corneal reflex is the blink that occurs ...

Rehydrate: To restore lost water to the body tissues and fluids. Prompt rehydration is imp...

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

Remedy: Something that consistently helps treat or cure a disease.

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

Sensation: In medicine and physiology, sensation refers to the registration of an incoming...

Stomach: The digestive organ that is located in the upper abdomen, under the ribs. The upp...

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

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

Taste: A perception that results from stimulation of a gustatory nerve. Taste belongs to t...

Teaspoon: An old-fashioned but convenient household measure that is equal to about 5 cc of...

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

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

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

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

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

Vein: A blood vessel that carries blood that is low in oxygen content from the body back t...

Vertigo: Aside from being the name of a classic 1958 Alfred Hitchcock film (with Jimmy St...

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

Vomit: Matter from the stomach that has come up into and may be ejected beyond the mouth, ...

World Health Organization: The subagency of the United Nations (UN) that is concerned with...

Yogurt: A common dish made of milk curdled and fermented with a culture of Lactobacillus (...