Intro to Pathology

pathophysiology

branch of science studying structural and functional changes leading to disease

pathology

study of diseased cells and tissues

disease/pathology

any deviation from the normal state of health/wellness

pathogenesis and abnormal cellular and physiologic process

• disruption in homeostasis

diagnosis

identification of a specific disease

pathogenesis

development of a disease; sequence of events involved in tissue changes related to disease process

impairment

loss or abnormality at tissue or body system level

problems in body function or structure

functional limitation/activity limitation

restriction of one’s performance of specific actions/activities at an individual level

disability

limitation in a social context; problems one may have in real-life situations

etiology

causative factors

• intrinsic

• extrinsic

• idiopathic

• iatrogenic

intrinsic factors

• age

• gender

• race

• heredity/genetics

extrinsic factors

• socioeconomic status

• lifestyle:

  • diet

  • obesity

  • physical activity

  • smoking

  • alcohol

  • sexual behavior

  • drugs

  • stress

  • medications

• environment:

  • job

  • home

  • air/water/sanitation/pollutants

  • exposure to chemical agents (dyes, preservatives, cosmetics, pesticides)

  • location

  • domestic violence

idiopathic

no known cause

iatrogenic

treatment, procedure, or error is responsible

epidemiology

the science of tracking disease occurrences and patterns

• epidemic

• morbidity

• mortality

• occurrence

epidemic

disease outbreaks over a given area

morbidity

disease rates within a group

mortality

death rate

occurrence

• incidence: # of new cases in a given time period

• prevalence: total number of existing cases

acute

short-term; lasts a short time but develops quickly

fever, pain, acute appendicitis

subacute

time course between acute and chronic

chronic

long-term; can have intermittent acute episodes

latent

initial silent disease stage with no clinical signs present; incubation period

prodromal

time in early disease development when patient is aware of nonspecific change in body

headache, fatigue, loss of appetite

remission

subsiding disease symptoms

exacerbation

increased signs of disease; flare-up. along with remission, it marks disease progression

sign

objective indicators of disease, obvious to others

fever, rash

symptom

subjective feelings/complaints

nausea, dizziness, headache

syndrome

a collection of signs and symptoms occurring together

sequelae

potential unwanted outcomes of a primary condition

paralysis after recovery from a stroke

manifestation

clinical evidence or effects; signs and symptoms of a disease

lesion

a specific, local change in tissue

blister, pimple, mole

prognosis

likelihood of recovery

comorbities

2 or more coexisting but unrelated medical conditions

PTSD with CVA

specific treatment

based on major cause of the disease

insulin for diabetes

symptomatic treatment

alleviates symptom but does not affect course of the disease

coughing treated by antitussive medication