Glossary of Pathological Terms Lama El Banna

1. Glossary of Pathological Terms
A
 abscess - a localized collection of pus in a cavity formed by disintegration of
tissues.
 acute - a disease with sudden onset of signs and a short course.
 agenesis - absence or failure of formation of any part or organ.
 agglutination - clumping together of cells or particles.
 aggregation - a total or coming together of separate parts.
 amyloidosis - a group of conditions of diverse etiologies characterized by the
accumulation of insoluble fibrillar proteins (amyloid) in various organs and tissues
of the body - eventually organ function is compromised. The associated disease
states may be inflammatory, hereditary or neoplastic and the deposition may be
local or generalized or systemic.
 anaphylaxis - the immediate immunologic (allergic) reaction initiated by the
combination ofantigen (allergen) with mast cell cytophilic antobody (chiefly
IgE). anaphylactic (adj) - as in anaphylactic shock - life threatening respiratory
distress, vascular collapse and shock; manifesting extremely great sensitivity to
foreign protein or other material.
 anaplasia - loss of differentiation of cells and of their orientation to one another
and to their framework and blood vessels.
 aneurysm - a ballooning out of the wall of a blood vessel or a heart chamber due
to a weakening of the wall by disease or injury.
 angiogenesis - the formation of new blood vessels.
 anomaly - an irregularity or deviation from normal; an abnormal structure.
 antibody - an immunoglobulin molecule that reacts with a specific antigen that
induced its synthesis. Synthesized by B lymphocytes that have been activated by
the binding of a antigen to a cell surface receptor.
 antigen - any substance, almost always a protein, not normally present in the
body which when introduced to the body stimulates a specific immune response
and the production of antibodies.

2.  apoptosis - programmed cell death (carefully orchestrated by genes and gene
products that turn the pathway to cell death on or off); fragmentation of the cell
into membrane-bound particles that are eliminated by phagocytosis; from the
Greek for "falling off".
 asymptomatic - producing or showing no symptoms.
 atrophy - a wasting away; a decrease in the size and function of a cell, tissue,
organ or part.
B
 bacteremia - the presence of bacteria in the blood.
 benign - not malignant; not recurrent; favourable for recovery.
 biopsy - removal and examination, usually microscopic, of tissue from the living
body, performed to establish a precise diagnosis
C
 carbuncle - deep-seated pus-producing infection of the skin and subcutaneous
tissues.
 carcinogen - a substance that causes cancer.
 caseous - "cheesy" or "cheese-like". As in caseous necrosis - cell death
characteristic of certain inflammations (e.g. tuberculosis) where the affected
tissue shows the crumbly consistency and dull, opaque quality of cheese. Based
on casein - the principal protein of milk, the basis of curds and cheese.
 catarrah - inflammation of a mucuos membrane with increased flow of
mucous. catarrhal (adj.)
 cellulitis - inflammation of the soft or connective tissue in which a thin, watery
exudate spreads through the tissue spaces.
 chronic - a condition with slow onset, mild but continuous manifestations and
long-lasting, often progressive effects.
 CIS - carcinoma in situ; a neoplasm where the tumor cells are still confined to the
epithelium of origin without invasion of the basement membrane (likelihood of
subsequent invasive growth is presumed to be high)..

3.  congestion - abnormal accumulation of blood or fluid in a part (e.g. of blood -
passive congestion - obstruction of the escape of blood from a part (as in
liver); pulmonary congestion - engorgement of pulmonary vessels, with
transudation of fluid into alveolar and interstitial spaces).
 congenital - present at birth; cause may be genetic or non-genetic (infectious,
chemical, physical).
 contusion - a bruise; an injury of a part without a break in the skin, characterized
by swelling, discoloration, and pain.
 cyst - any closed epithelium-lined cavity or sac, normal or abnormal, usually
containing liquid or semisolid material; a bladder.
 cytology - the study of cells, their origin, structure, function and pathology; the
microscopic examination of cells as a means of detecting malignancy and
microbiologic changes. Cells can be obtained by aspiration, washing, smear or
scraping.
D
 degenerative - progressive and often irreversible deterioration.
 diapedesis - the passage of leukocytes (white blood cells) through capillary
walls to site of inflammation.
 differentiation - the distinguishing of one thing from another; the act or process
of acquiring completely individual characters; increase in morphological or
chemical heterogeneity.
 dysplasia - abnormality of development; in pathology, alteration in size, shape,
and organization of adult cells.
E
 ecchymosis - a small hemorrhagic spot in the skin or mucous membrane, larger
than apetechia, forming a nonelevated, rounded, or irregular blue or purplish
patch. ecchymoses, pl.
 edema - the accumulation of excess fluid in the intercellular or interstitial tissue
spaces or body cavities.
 effusion(s) - the escape of a fluid into a part; the effused material (see exudate).

4.  embolus (emboli, pl.) - a detached intravascular solid, liquid or gaseous mass
that is carried by the blood to a site distant from its point of origin, thus
obstructing the flow of blood. Most (99%) arise
from thrombi (thromboembolus). embolism - the sudden obstruction or blocking
of a vessel by an embolus.
 empyema - accumulation of pus in a body cavity.
 erythema - diffuse or patchy redness of skin, blanching on pressure, due to
congestion of cutaneous capillaries.
 exudate - a fluid with a high concentration of protein and cellular debris which
has escaped from blood vessels and has been deposited in tissues, or on tissue
surfaces, usually as a result of inflammation.
F
 fibrosis - formation of fibrous tissue usually in repair or replacement of cellular
elements.fibrotic (adj).
 fistula (fistulas, fistulae, pl.) - an abnormal passage or communication from
one organ to another or from an internal organ to the body surface; may be
caused by disease or injury or created surgically.
G
 gangrene - necrosis due to obstruction, loss or diminution of blood supply.
 granuloma - a term applied to any small nodular aggregation of mononuclear
inflammatory cells or such a collection of modified macrophages resembling
epithelial cells, giant cells and other macrophages (usually surrounded by a rim
of lymphocytes).
H
 hamartoma - a benign tumour-like nodule composed of an overgrowth of mature
cells and tissues normally present in the affected part, but with disorganization
and often with one element predominating.
 hematoma - a localized mass of blood, usually clotted, trapped in an organ,
space, or tissue, resulting from a break in the wall of a blood vessel.

5.  hemorrhage - to bleed; an escape of blood from the blood
vessels. hemorrhagic (adj.)
 hemostasis - the arrest of bleeding by the physiological properties of
vasoconstriction and coagulation or by surgical means; interruption of blood flow
through any vessel or to any anatomical area.
 hyperemia - an excess of blood in a part.
 hyperplasia - a controlled increase in the number of normal cells in normal
arrangement in an organ or tissue, causing a corresponding increase in tissue
mass.
 hypersensitivity - a state of altered reactivity in which the body reacts with an
exaggerated immune response to a foreign agent.
 hypertrophy - an increase in individual cell size, which in turn leads to an
increase in tissue mass/organ size.
 hypoplasia - incomplete development or underdevelopment of a tissue, usually
due to a decrease in number of cells.
I
 iatrogenic - resulting from the activity of physicians; usually used for any
adverse condition in a patient resulting from treatment by a physician or surgeon.
Derived from iatr(o) (Gr) - medicine, physician. iatric - pertaining to medicine or a
physician.
 idiopathic - occurring without known cause.
 infarct - a localized area of ischemic necrosis produced by blockage of the
arterial supply or venous drainage of the part.
 infarction - the formation of an infarct; acute myocardial infarction (AMI) -
circulation to a region of the heart is obstructed and necrosis of tissue is
occurring.
 in situ - means "in its original place"; may be used descriptively of a cancer (e.g.
carcinoma in situ) or to refer to experiments conducted in place (e.g in situ
hybridization).
 ischemia - (ischemic = adj.), deficiency of blood in a part, usually due to
functional constriction or actual obstruction or blockage of a blood vessel.

6. K
 karyolysis - the dissolution of the nucleus - the nucleus swells and gradually
loses its chromatin.
 karyorrhexis - rupture of the cell nucleus in which the chromatin disintegrates
into formless granules that are extruded from the cell.
 karyotype (karyotyping) - the chromosomal constitution of the cell nucleus; the
photographic representation of the chromosomes for analysis.
L
 liqefactive necrosis - a type of necrosis characterized by dull, opaque, partly or
completely fluid remains of tissue, observed in abscesses and frequently in
infarcts of brain.
M
 malignant - of tumours, having the properties of anaplasia, invasiveness
and metastasis.
 metaplasia - the change in the type of adult cells in a tissue to a form abnormal
for that tissue
 metastasis - (metastases = pl.; metastatic = adj), transfer of disease from one
organ or part of the body to another not directly connected with it, due either to
transfer of pathogenic organisms or to transfer of cells; all malignant tumours are
capable of metastasizing. A growth of pathogenic microorganisms or of abnormal
cells distant from the site primarily involved by the morbid process.
 morbidity - the condition of being diseased or sick; the 'sick' rate, i.e. the ratio of
sick to well persons in a community.
 mortality - the quality of being mortal or alive; the 'death' rate, i.e. the number of
people dying in a given population.
N
 necrosis - the morphological changes indicative of cell death caused by
progressive enzymatic degradation.
 neoplasia - the formation of a neoplasm.

7.  neoplasm - tumour; any new or abnormal growth, specifically one in which cell
multiplication is uncontrolled. Neoplasms may be benign or malignant.
O
 oncogene(s) - giving rise to tumours or causing tumour formation; genes that
contribute to the formation of tumours.
P
 pathology - the branch of medicine that deals with the essential nature of
disease and the changes in body tissues and organs which cause or are caused
by disease; the structural and functional manifestations of disease.
 pathogen - a disease-causing microorganism or agent.
 pathogenesis - the development of disease; specifically the cellular events and
reactions and mechanisms occurring in the development of disease.
 petechia(e) - a minute red spot(s) due to escape of a small amount of
blood. petechial, adj.
 polyp - a general term for any mass of tissue that projects outwards from a
normally smooth surface.
 prognosis - a forecast of the course and probable outcome of a disorder.
 prophylaxis - to prevent disease; preventive treatment.
 purpura - a small hemorrhage in the skin, mucous membrane or serosal surface;
a group of disorders characterized by the presence of purpuric lesions,
ecchymoses, and a tendency to bruise easily. purpuric, adj.
 pus - a protein rich liquid inflammation product made up of cells (white blood
cells or leukocytes), a thin fluid, and cellular debris.
 pyknosis - a thickening, especially degeneration of a cell in which the nucleus
shrinks in size and the chromatin condenses to a solid, structureless mass.
 pyogenic - producing pus.
S
 sclerosis - abnormal hardening of tissue.

8.  sedimentation rate (ESR/ZSR) - non-specific test that measures settling of red
blood cells per unit time in a column of fresh blood - a rough measure of
increased amounts of fibrinogen and globulin which may occur in certain
pathologic or physiologic states (e.g. heart attacks, cancer, pregnancy). ESR =
erythrocyte sedimentation rate.
 sepsis - the presence of bacteria (pathogenic organisms) or their toxins in the
blood or tissues.
 shock - a sudden disturbance of mental equilibrium; a profound hemodynamic
and metabolic disturbance characterized by failure of the circulatory system to
maintain adequate perfusion of vital organs.
 sign - an objective indication or evidence of disease discovered on examination
of a patient. Contrast with symptom.
 staging - the determination of distinct phases or periods in the course of a
disease, the life history of an organism, or any biological process; the
classification of neoplasms according to the extent of the tumour (e.g. TMN
staging - staging of tumours according to three basic components: primary
tumour (T), regional nodes (N), and metastasis (M) - from 0 (undetectable) to 4).
 suppuration (suppurative = adj.) - formation or discharge of pus.
 symptom - subjective evidence of disease as perecived and reported by a
patient.
T
 thrombus - (pl. thrombi), a solid mass formed from the constituents of blood
within the blood vessels or the heart. Thrombi that form within the rapidly moving
arterial circulation are composed largely of fibrin and platelets with only a few
trapped red and white cells.
 thrombosis - the inappropriate or pathological formation of a solid mass (from
the constiutents of blood) within a blood vessel or organ.
 toxin - a poison produced by a living organism.
 transient - of short duration, momentary.
U

9.  ulcer - a local defect or excavation of the surface of an organ or tissue produced
by the sloughing of necrotic inflammatory tissue.
V
 vasodilator - an agent that causes dilatation of the blood vessels.
 virulence - the degree of pathogenecity of a microorganism as indicated by the
severity of disease produced and the ability to invade the tissues of the
host. virulent (adj.)