Dictionary of Medical Terms

The back of the head.

The branch of medicine that deals with the care and treatment of women during pregnancy and childbirth.

Marked by a need to repeatedly perform certain behaviors or rituals.

An ongoing preoccupation with an idea.

Having too much body fat. A weight more than 20% above the normal range.

Having to do with the hospital. For example, an nosocomial infection is one that’s acquired during hospitalization.

A hormone produced by the adrenal medulla and certain sympathetic nerve fibers.

Failure of the ends of a broken bone to mend.

A swelling, knot or knob.

Excessive urination at night.

The egg of a louse.

A reduced ability to see in dim light. May be caused by a vitamin-A deficiency or glaucoma.

A highly toxic and addictive component of tobacco. While the amounts obtained from smoking may not be enough to be…

A mole or other colored spot on the skin.

A mature white blood cell with a three- to five-lobed nucleus.

An emotional disorder that can interfere with a person’s ability to lead a normal life.

Disease of the nervous system or of an individual nerve.

A nerve cell.

A benign but sometimes painful tumor growing on a nerve.

The branch of medicine that pertains to the nervous system.

An inherited disorder that causes dark spots on the skin and tumors of the skin, peripheral, optic and acoustic…