Health, diseases terms glossary - Starting with A

Ascorbic acid: Ascorbic acid- the chemical term for vitamin C.
Ash: Ash- The mineral element left after the combustion of food is known as ash; this may be acid or alkaline.
Aspartame A man: Aspartame A man-made sweetener that people use in place of sugar because it is a non-caloric sweetening agent, which is 200 times as sweet as ordinary table sugar.
Asthma: Asthma- a disorder characterized by inflamed airways and difficulty breathing
Atherectomy: Atherectomy- a procedure performed to remove plaque that is blocking an artery
Atheroma: Atheroma- fatty deposits on the inner walls of blood vessels, which can cause narrowing and decrease blood flow
Atherosclerosis: Atherosclerosis- One of many diseases in which fatty deposits build up on the inner walls of the coronary and other major arteries. This buildup of fat may slow down or stop blood flow. This disease can happen to people who have had diabetes for a long time.
Athlete's foot: Athlete's foot- an infection between the toes caused by a fungus, which leads to sore, cracked, and peeling skin
Atrial fibrillation: Atrial fibrillation- an irregular heartbeat in which the upper chambers of the heart (the atria) beat inconsistently and rapidly
Atrial flutter: Atrial flutter- an irregular heartbeat in which the upper chambers of the heart (the atria) beat rapidly but consistently
Atrial septal defect: Atrial septal defect- a hole located in the wall between the two upper chambers of the heart
Audiogram: Audiogram- a graph showing a person's hearing ability, determined from a set of tests examining hearing acuity of different sound frequencies
Aura: Aura- a "warning" signal that comes before a migraine headache or an epileptic seizure, which might include emotions or sensations of movement or discomfort
Autoimmune Disease: Autoimmune Disease- Disorder of the body’s immune system in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys body tissue that it believes to be foreign.
Autonomic nervous system: Autonomic nervous system- the part of the nervous system that controls automatic body functions, such as heart rate, sweating, pupil dilation, and digestion; divided into the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system
Autonomic Neuropathy: Autonomic Neuropathy- A disease of the nerves affecting mostly the internal organs such as the bladder muscles, the cardiovascular system, the digestive tract, and the genital organs. These nerves are not under a person’s conscious control and function automatically. Also called visceral neuropathy.
Autosomal dominant: Autosomal dominant- a term describing a gene on any chromosome other than the sex chromosomes that produces its effect whenever it is present; can also describe the effect of the gene itself

Glossary