Medical Dictionary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

flicks (fliks)
Rapid, involuntary fixation movements of the eye of 5–10 minutes of arc. SYN: flick movements.

Flieringa
Henri J., Dutch ophthalmologist, *1891. See F. ring.

flight into disease
Gain through falling ill or assuming the sick role. See primary gain, secondary gain.

flight into health
In dynamic psychotherapy, the early but often only temporary disappearance of the symptoms that ostensibly brought the patient into therapy; a defense against the anxiety engendered by the prospect of further psychoanalytic exploration of the patient's conflicts.

Flint
Austin, Jr., U.S. physiologist, 1836–1915. See F. arcade.

Flint
Austin, U.S. physician, 1812–1886. See Austin F. murmur, F. murmur, Austin F. phenomenon.

flip
A burn occurring on one side only of the entrance site in a gunshot wound of the soft parts.

flitter
SYN: impure flutter.

floater (flot′er)
An object in the field of vision that originates in the vitreous body. SEE ALSO: muscae volitantes.

floating (flot′ing)
1. Free or unattached. 2. Unduly movable; out of the normal position; denoting an occasional abnormal condition of certain organs, such as the kidneys, liver, spleen, etc.

floc (flok)
A colloquial term for the product of a flocculation, i.e., the separation of the disperse phase of a colloidal suspension into discrete, usually visible particles, as in certain serologic precipitin tests.

floccillation (flok-si-la′shun)
An aimless plucking at the bedclothes, as if one were picking off threads or tufts of cotton. [Mod. L. flocculus]

floccose (flok′os)
In bacteriology, applied to a growth of short, curving filaments or chains closely but irregularly disposed. [L. floccus, a flock of wool]

flocculable (flok′u-la-bl)
Capable of undergoing flocculation.

floccular (flok′u-lar)
Relating to a flocculus of any sort; specifically to the flocculus of the cerebellum.

flocculate (flok′u-lat)
To become flocculent.

flocculation (flok-u-la′shun)
Precipitation from solution in the form of fleecy masses; the process of becoming flocculent. SYN: flocculence.

floccule (flok′ul)
SYN: flocculus.

flocculence (flok′u-lens)
SYN: flocculation.

flocculent (flok′u-lent)
1. Resembling tufts of cotton or wool; denoting a fluid, such as the urine, containing numerous shreds or fluffy particles of gray-white or white mucus or other material. 2. In bacteriology, denoting a fluid culture in which there are numerous colonies either floating in the fluid medium or loosely deposited at the bottom.

flocculonodular (flok′u-lo-nod′u-lar)
See f. lobe.

flocculus, pl .flocculi (flok′u-lus, -li)
1. A tuft or shred of cotton or wool or anything resembling it. 2. [TA] A small lobe of the cerebellum at the posterior border of the middle cerebellar peduncle anterior to the biventer lobule; it is associated with the nodulus of the vermis; together, these two structures compose the vestibular part of the cerebellum. SYN: floccule. [Mod. L. dim. of L. floccus, a tuft of wool] accessory f. an occasional small lobule of the cerebellum adjacent to the f..

Flocks
Milton, U.S. ophthalmologist, *1914. See Harrington-F. test.

Flood
Valentine, Irish anatomist and surgeon, 1800–1847. See F. ligament.

flood (flud)
1. To bleed profusely from the uterus, as after childbirth or in cases of menorrhagia. 2. Colloquialism for a profuse menstrual discharge. [A.S. flod]

flooding (flud′ing)
1. Bleeding profusely from the uterus, especially after childbirth or in severe cases of menorrhagia. 2. Profuse uterine hemorrhage. 3. A type of behavior therapy; a therapeutic strategy at the beginning of therapy, in which the patients imagine the most anxiety-producing scene and fully immerse (flood) themselves in it. Cf.:systematic desensitization.

floor (flor) [TA]
The lower inner surface of an open space or hollow organ. f. of orbit [TA] the f. of the orbit; the shortest of the four walls of the orbit, sloping upward from the orbital margin; it is comprised of the maxilla and orbital process of the palatine bone. SYN: paries inferior orbitae [TA] , inferior wall of orbit. f. of tympanic cavity jugular wall of middle ear.

flora (flo′ra)
1. Plant life, usually of a certain locality or district. 2. The population of microorganisms inhabiting the internal and external surfaces of healthy conventional animals. SYN: microbial associates. [L. F., goddess of flowers, fr. flos (flor-), a flower]

florantyrone (flor-an′ti-ron)
An agent which increases the volume of bile without increasing the quantity of bile solids or stimulating evacuation of the gallbladder.

Florence
Albert, French physician, 1851–1927. See F. crystals, under crystal.

Florence flask
See under flask.

Florey
Sir Howard W., Australian-British pathologist and Nobel laureate, 1898–1968. See F. unit.

florid (flor′id)
1. Of a bright red color; denoting certain cutaneous lesions. 2. Fully developed. [L. floridus, flowery]

Florschütz
Georg, German physician, *1859. See F. formula.

floss
1. SYN: dental f.. 2. To use dental f. in oral hygiene. dental f. an untwisted thread made from fine, short, silk or synthetic fibers, frequently waxed; used for cleansing interproximal spaces and between contact areas of the teeth. SYN: f. silk, f. (1) .

flotation (flo-ta′shun)
A process for separating solids by their tendency to float upon or sink into a liquid.

Flourens
Marie Jean Pierre, French physiologist, 1794–1867. See F. theory.

flow (flo)
1. To bleed from the uterus less profusely than in flooding. 2. The menstrual discharge. 3. Movement of a liquid or gas; specifically, the volume of liquid or gas passing a given point per unit of time. In respiratory physiology, the symbol for gas f. is V and for blood f. is Q, followed by subscripts denoting location and chemical species. 4. In rheology, a permanent deformation of a body that proceeds with time. [A.S. flowan] Bingham f. the f. characteristics exhibited by a Bingham plastic. Doppler color f. a computer-generated color image produced by Doppler ultrasonography in which different directions of f. are represented by different hues. See Doppler ultrasonography. effective renal blood f. (ERBF) the amount of blood flowing to the parts of the kidney that are involved with production of constituents of urine. effective renal plasma f. (ERPF) the amount of plasma flowing to the parts of the kidney that have a function in the production of constituents of urine; the clearance of substances such as iodopyracet and p-aminohippuric acid, assuming that the extraction ratio in the peritubular capillaries is 100%. forced expiratory f. (FEF) expiratory f. during measurement of forced vital capacity; subscripts specify the exact parameter measured, e.g., peak instantaneous f., the instantaneous f. at some specified point on the curve of volume expired versus time, or on the f.-volume curve, the mean f. between two expired volumes. gene f. changes over time in the genetic composition of a population as a result of migration rather than of mutation and selection. laminar f. the relative motion of elements of a fluid along smooth parallel paths, which occurs at lower values of Reynolds number. newtonian f. the type of f. characteristic of a newtonian fluid. peak expiratory f. the maximum f. at the outset of forced expiration, which is reduced in proportion to the severity of airway obstruction, as in asthma. shear f. a f. of a material in which parallel planes in the material are displaced in a direction parallel to each other.

Flower
Sir William H., English surgeon and anatomist, 1831–1899. See F. bone, F. dental index.

flower basket of Bochdalek
Part of the choroid plexus of the fourth ventricle protruding through the foramen of Luschka and resting on the dorsal surface of the glossopharyngeal nerve.

flowers (flow′erz)
A mineral substance in a powdery state after sublimation. f. of antimony SYN: antimony trioxide. f. of benzoin SYN: benzoic acid. f. of sulfur SYN: sublimed sulfur. f. of zinc SYN: zinc oxide.

flowmeter (flo′me-ter)
A device for measuring velocity or volume of flow of liquids or gases. electromagnetic f. a f. in which a magnetic field is applied to a blood vessel to measure flow in terms of the voltage developed by the blood as a conductor moving through the magnetic field.

floxacillin (flok′sa-sil′in)
A penicillin antibiotic resistant to β-lactamase (penicillinase).

floxuridine (flok-soo′ri-den)
The deoxynucleoside of fluorouracil; an antineoplastic agent. Fluorouracil is metabolized to f. and this, in turn, to 5-fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine 5′-monophosphate. The latter agent inhibits thymidylic synthetase; uridine phosphatase is also inhibited.

flu (floo)
SYN: influenza.

fluanisone (floo-an′i-son)
An antianxiety agent.

flucrylate (floo′kri-lat)
A surgical tissue adhesive.

fluctuance
SYN: fluctuation (2) .

fluctuate (fluk′tu-at)
1. To move in waves. 2. To vary, to change from time to time, as in referring to any quantity or quality, e.g., height of blood pressure, concentration of substance in urine or blood, secretory activity, etc. [L. fluctuo, pp. -atus, to flow in waves]

fluctuation (fluk-tu-a′shun)
1. The act of fluctuating. 2. A wavelike motion felt on palpating a cavity with nonrigid walls, especially one containing fluid. SYN: fluctuance.

flucytosine (floo-si′to-sen)
An antifungal drug.

fludrocortisone acetate (floo-dro-kor′ti-son)
A potent mineralocorticoid. SYN: 9α-fluorocortisol, 9α-fluorohydrocortisone acetate.

fluence (H) (floo′ens)
A measure of the quantity of x-radiation in a beam in diagnostic radiology, either particle f., the number of photons passing an aperture of unit cross-sectional area, or energy f., the sum of the energies of the photons passing through a unit area. Cf.:flux. [L. fluentia, a flowing, fr. fluo, to flow]

fluency (floo′en-se)
The smooth flow of speech sounds in connected discourse, without interruptions or repetitions. [L. fluentia,a flowing, fr. fluo, to flow]

fluent (floo′ent)
Relating to fluency.

flufenamic acid (floo-fen-am′ik)
An anti-inflammatory agent; resembles mefenamic acid.

fluid (floo′id) [TA]
1. A nonsolid substance, such as a liquid or gas, that tends to flow or conform to the shape of the container. 2. Consisting of particles or distinct entities that can readily change their relative positions; i.e., tending to move or capable of flowing. [L. fluidus, fr. fluo, to flow] allantoic f. the f. within the allantoic cavity. amnionic f. a liquid within the amnion that surrounds the fetus and protects it from mechanical injury. SYN: liquor amnii. Brodie f. an aqueous salt solution used in manometers designed for testing gas evolution or uptake, as in cell respiration. bronchoalveolar f. a f. containing several lytic enzymes that serves to remove inspired particulates from the pulmonary airways. Callison f. a diluting f. for counting red blood cells, consisting of 1 ml of Loeffler alkaline methylene blue, 1 ml of formalin, 10 ml of glycerol, 1 g of neutral ammonium oxalate, and 2.5 g of sodium chloride added to 90 ml of distilled water, mixed well, and permitted to stand until the solids are dissolved and the reagent is clear; the preparation is filtered prior to use. cerebrospinal f. (CSF) [TA] a f. largely secreted by the choroid plexuses of the ventricles of the brain, filling the ventricles and the subarachnoid cavities of the brain and spinal cord. SYN: liquor cerebrospinalis [TA] . crevicular f. SYN: gingival f.. Dakin f. SYN: Dakin solution. dentinal f. the lymph or f. of dentin which appears on the surface of freshly cut dentin, especially in young teeth; it is a transudate of extracellular f., mainly cytoplasm of odontoblastic processes, from the dental pulp via the dentinal tubules. SYN: dental lymph. extracellular f. (ECF) 1. the interstitial f. and the plasma, constituting about 20% of the weight of the body; 2. sometimes used to mean all f. outside of cells, usually excluding transcellular f.. extravascular f. all f. outside the blood vessels, i.e., intracellular, interstitial, and transcellular fluids; it constitutes about 48 to 58% of the body weight. Farrant mounting f. an aqueous solution containing gum arabic, arsenic trioxide, glycerol, and water, used in mounting histologic sections directly from water; some modifications involve addition of potassium acetate to bring the pH up to neutrality and substitution of other preservatives like cresol or thymol for arsenic trioxide. gingival f. f. containing plasma proteins, which is present in increasing amounts in association with gingival inflammation. SYN: crevicular f., sulcular f.. infranatant f. clear f. that, after the settling out of an insoluble liquid or solid by the action of normal gravity or of centrifugal force, takes up the lower portion of the contents of a vessel. interstitial f. the f. in spaces between the tissue cells, constituting about 16% of the weight of the body; closely similar in composition to lymph. SYN: tissue f.. intracellular f. (ICF) the f. within the tissue cells, constituting about 30–40% of the body weight. SYN: intracellular water. intraocular f. SYN: aqueous humor. newtonian f. a f. in which flow and rate of shear are always proportional to the applied stress; such f. precisely obeys Poiseuille law. Cf.:non-newtonian f.. non-newtonian f. a f. in which flow and rate of shear are not always proportional to the applied stress and which does not obey Poiseuille law. As in anomalous viscosity; Fahraeus-Lindqvist effect; Bingham plastic. Cf.:newtonian f.. pleural f. the thin film of f. between the visceral and parietal pleurae. May significantly increase in disease states, when termed pleural effusion. prostatic f. succus prostaticus;a whitish secretion that is one of the constituents of the semen. pseudoplastic f. a f. which exhibits shear thinning. Rees-Ecker f. an aqueous solution of sodium citrate, sucrose, and brilliant cresyl blue used in platelet counts. Scarpa f. SYN: endolymph. seminal f. SYN: semen (1) . sulcular f. SYN: gingival f.. supernatant f. clear f. that, after the settling out of an insoluble liquid or solid by the action of normal gravity or of centrifugal force, takes up the upper portion of the contents of a vessel. synovial f. [TA] a clear thixotropic f., the main function of which is to serve as a lubricant in a joint, tendon sheath, or bursa; consists mainly of mucin with some albumin, fat, epithelium, and leukocytes; synovial f. also helps to nourish the avascular articular cartilage. SYN: synovia [TA] , joint oil. thixotropic f. a liquid that tends to turn into a gel when left standing, but which turns back into a liquid if agitated, as by vibrations or subjection to adequate shear. tissue f. SYN: interstitial f.. transcellular fluids the fluids that are not inside cells, but are separated from plasma and interstitial f. by cellular barriers; e.g., cerebrospinal f., synovial f., pleural f.. ventricular f. the portion of the cerebrospinal f. that is contained in the ventricles of the brain.

fluidextract (floo-id-eks′trakt)
Pharmacopeial liquid preparation of vegetable drugs, made by percolation, containing alcohol as a solvent or as a preservative, or both, and so made that each milliliter contains the therapeutic constituents of 1 g of the standard drug that it represents. SYN: liquid extract.

fluidglycerates (floo-id-glis′er-ats)
Pharmaceutical preparations, formerly official in the NF, containing approximately 50% by volume of glycerin but no alcohol, and of the same drug strength as fluidextracts.

fluidism (floo′i-dizm)
SYN: humoral doctrine.

fluidity (floo-id′i-te)
The reciprocal of viscosity; unit: rhe = poise−1.

fluidounce (floo′id-owns′)
A measure of capacity: 8 fluidrams. The imperial f. is a measure containing 1 avoirdupois ounce, 437.5 grains, of distilled water at 15.6°C, and equals 28.4 ml; the U.S. f. is 1/128 gallon, contains 454.6 grains of distilled water at 25°C, and equals 29.57 ml.

fluidrachm, fluidram (floo′i-dram′)
A measure of capacity: 18 of a fluidounce; a teaspoonful. The imperial f. contains 54.8 grains of distilled water, and equals 3.55 ml; the U.S. f. contains 57.1 grains of distilled water and equals 3.70 ml.

fluke (flook)
Common name for members of the class Trematoda (phylum Platyhelminthes). All flukes of mammals (subclass Digenea) are internal parasites in the adult stage and are characterized by complex digenetic life cycles involving a snail initial host, in which larval multiplication occurs, and the release of swimming larvae (cercariae), which directly penetrate the skin of the final host (as in schistosomes), encyst on vegetation (as in Fasciola), or encyst in or on another intermediate host (as in Clonorchis and other fish-borne flukes). Flukes of lower vertebrates (order Monogenea), especially fish, are frequently monogenetic ectoparasites or gill parasites. Blood flukes live in the mesenteric-portal bloodstream and associated vesical and pelvic venous plexuses; they include Schistosoma haematobium (the vesical blood f.), S. mansoni (Manson intestinal blood f.), and S. japonicum (the Oriental blood f.). Other important flukes are Paragonimus westermani (bronchial or lung f.), Opisthorchis felineus (cat liver f.), Clonorchis sinensis (Chinese liver or Oriental f.), Heterophyes heterophyes (Egyptian or small intestinal f.), Fasciolopsis buski (large intestinal f.), Dicrocoelium dendriticum (lancet f.), Fasciola hepatica (liver or sheep liver f.), and Paramphistomum (rumen f.). [A.S. floc, flatfish]

flumazenil (floo′ma-ze-nil)
A benzodiazepine with antagonist properties at the benzodiazepine recognition site of the benzodiazepine-GABA-chloride channel complex. Used as a treatment for overdose with benzodiazepine-type central nervous system depressants.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

. . . Feedback