MEdterm

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the core terminology across disease mechanisms, physical diagnosis and treatment, pharmacology, cardiovascular structures and disorders, and hematology/immunology.

Pathology

The scientific study of disease.

Etiology

The specific cause of a disease.

Pathogenesis

The mechanism or process through which a disease develops.

Acute disease

A disease that is sudden in onset, severe, and of short duration.

Chronic disease

A disease of long duration that typically progresses slowly.

Neoplasia

Abnormal, uncontrolled new growth of tissue.

Sepsis

The presence of harmful microorganisms or their toxins in the body.

Benign tumor

A growth that remains localized, does not metastasize to other tissues, and is often amenable to surgical removal (e.g., fibroma, chondroma).

Malignant tumor

An invasive growth commonly called cancer that can destroy nearby structures and metastasize to distant anatomical sites.

Carcinoma

A malignant neoplasm originating in epithelial tissue.

Sarcoma

A malignant tumor arising from connective tissue or muscle.

Cyst

A noncancerous abnormal sac or pouch filled with fluid or semisolid material, frequently found in breasts, sebaceous glands, and ovaries.

Rubor

The cardinal sign of inflammation denoting redness caused by the dilation of small blood vessels.

Calor

The cardinal sign of inflammation denoting heat resulting from increased local blood flow and warmth.

Dolor

The cardinal sign of inflammation denoting pain caused by tissue distortion secondary to edema.

Functio laesa

The cardinal sign of inflammation denoting loss of function resulting from pain or swelling limiting movement.

Innate immunity

Inborn, nonspecific immune defense that provides a rapid first line of protection via physical barriers, secretions, and phagocytes.

Adaptive immunity

Acquired, specific immune defense developed over a lifetime that employs antibodies and lymphocytes to target specific pathogens.

Inspection

The initial physical assessment technique where the clinician visualizes the patient directly or indirectly using instruments such as an otoscope or ophthalmoscope.

Palpation

The physical examination technique of using hands and fingers to assess texture, temperature, moisture, mobility, consistency, pulses, size, and tenderness.

Percussion

The assessment technique of tapping the body surface to evaluate acoustic resonance and determine organ size, density, borders, or fluid presence.

Auscultation

The assessment technique of listening to internal body sounds (such as heart, lung, and bowel sounds), typically utilizing a stethoscope.

Abdominal examination order

The precise physical assessment sequence used for the abdomen: Inspection followed by Auscultation, Percussion, and Palpation ($\text{I-A-P-P}$).

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

An imaging technique that uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to generate detailed cross-sectional soft-tissue images without ionizing radiation.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

A functional imaging modality that tracks the metabolic activity and distribution of an injected radioactive substance, commonly labeled glucose.

Cancer grading

The histologic evaluation of tumor cells under a microscope to determine the level of cellular abnormality, classified from Grade I to Grade IV.

Cancer staging

The clinical determination of tumor spread using the TNM framework ($\text{primary tumor [T]}$, $\text{regional lymph nodes [N]}$, and $\text{distant metastases [M]}$), classified from Stage I to IV.

Contraindication

A specific condition or factor (such as concurrent medications, sensitivities, or family history) that renders a particular drug or treatment inadvisable.

Anaphylaxis

An acute, severe, life-threatening systemic hypersensitivity reaction capable of inducing rapid respiratory distress and circulatory collapse.

Drug synergy

The therapeutic interaction where two drugs administered concurrently produce an effect greater than the sum of their individual effects.

Agonist

A pharmacological agent that binds to a receptor and stimulates an intrinsic biological response.

Antagonist

A drug that binds to and blocks a specific receptor, preventing or diminishing the effect of an agonist.

Drug tolerance

A physiological state in which prolonged exposure to a constant dose results in a diminished therapeutic response, requiring escalating doses.

Parenteral administration

Medication delivery bypassing the digestive tract using needle injection, including intradermal, intramuscular, intravenous, and subcutaneous routes.

Myocardium

The thick middle muscular layer that constitutes the major structural wall of the heart.

Pericardium

The fibrous outer protective sac that encloses the heart and anchors it to surrounding thoracic structures.

Sinoatrial (SA) node

The natural cardiac pacemaker located in the upper wall of the right atrium that initiates electrical impulses setting the heart rhythm.

P wave

The electrocardiogram ($\text{ECG}$) waveform representing depolarization of the atria.

QRS complex

The electrocardiogram ($\text{ECG}$) waveform representing depolarization of the ventricles, which masks simultaneous atrial repolarization.

T wave

The electrocardiogram ($\text{ECG}$) deflection representing repolarization of the ventricles as they return to the resting state.

Atherosclerosis

A vascular disorder characterized by the progressive accumulation of fibrofatty plaques in arterial walls, resulting in lumen stenosis and tissue ischemia.

Angina pectoris

Constricting substernal chest discomfort resulting from inadequate coronary blood perfusion to the myocardium, often radiating to the left shoulder and arm.

Myocardial infarction (MI)

Ischemic necrosis of heart muscle resulting from sudden, sustained interruption of coronary arterial perfusion.

Aneurysm

A localized abnormal ballooning or weakness in an arterial wall that presents a significant danger of rupture and hemorrhage.

Plasma

The straw-colored liquid component of blood ($\text{approximately } 55\%$ of volume) consisting of $90\%$ water and $10\%$ dissolved solutes, maintaining a pH of roughly $7.4$.

Erythrocytes

Anucleate, biconcave blood cells containing iron-rich hemoglobin dedicated to systemic oxygen delivery, with an average lifespan of $120\,\text{days}$.

Thrombocytes

Cell fragments released by bone marrow megakaryocytes ($200{,}000\text{--}400{,}000/\mu\text{L}$) that initiate hemostasis and blood clotting.

Universal emergency red blood cell donor

O-negative ($\text{O}^-$) blood, chosen in life-threatening emergencies with unknown blood typing because it lacks A, B, and Rh surface antigens.

Pernicious anemia

A megaloblastic anemia caused by autoimmune destruction or lack of gastric intrinsic factor, inhibiting the ileal absorption of vitamin $B_{12}$.

Aplastic anemia

Severe bone marrow failure resulting in pancytopenia (simultaneous deficiency of erythrocytes, leukocytes, and platelets).

Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)

A systemic thrombohemorrhagic disorder characterized by initial microvascular clotting that consumes platelets and clotting factors, culminating in profuse hemorrhage.

Hemophilia

A sex-linked hereditary coagulopathy passed from mother to son caused by a deficiency of a specific clotting factor, often causing bleeding into joint spaces (hemarthrosis).

Hodgkin disease

A malignant lymphoma featuring painless lymphadenopathy (commonly cervical) identified histologically by the pathognomonic presence of Reed–Sternberg cells.