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Glossary 

You can search this section for key words in pathology

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A

abscess

a localized collection of pus in a cavity formed by disintegration of tissues.

achalasia

failure to relax; especially referring to smooth muscle fibers at any junction of the gastrointestinal tract (e.g. openings such as the pylorus, cardia or other sphincter muscles); especially failure of the esophageal sphincter to relax with swallowing..

agenesis

absence or failure bof formation of any part or organ.

ameloblastoma

Ameloblastoma is a rare, benign tumor of odontogenic epithelium(ameloblasts, or outside portion, of the teeth during development) much more commonly appearing in the mandible than the maxilla.

amenorrhea

the absence of menstrual bleeding.

amine

a chemical substance in the body whose structure is similar to ammonia; a family of hormones (adrenal medulla - epinephrine & norepinephrine) or neurotransmitters in brain (dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine, serotonin).

amino acids

the basic building block of protein.

amyloid

the extracellular protein substance deposited in amyloidosis. It is a waxy, amorphous, eosinophilic, hyalinelike material that exhibits red-green birefringence under polarized light when stained with Congo red. Amyloid deposits are composed of straight, non-branching fibrils with a diameter of 7.5 to 10 nm and indefinite length. Each fibril is read more

amyloidosis

a group of conditions of diverse etiologies characterized by the accumulation of insoluble fibrillar proteins (amyloid) in various organs and tissues of the body - eventually organ function is compromised. The associated disease states may be inflammatory, hereditary or neoplastic and the deposition may be local or generalized or systemic.

anaphylaxis

the immediate immunologic (allergic) reaction initiated by the combination of antigen (allergen) with mast cell cytophilic antobody (chiefly IgE). anaphylactic (adj) - as in anaphylactic shock - life threatening respiratory distress, vascular collapse and shock; manifesting extremely great sensitivity to foreign protein or other material.