Medical dictionary

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Gait: an individual's pattern of walking.
Gait analysis: a technique that uses camera recording, force plates, electromyography, and computer analysis to objectively measure an individual's pattern of walking.
Galactorrhoea: excessive milk production.
Galactose: a type of sugar found in milk products and sugar beets. It is also made in the body.
Gallbladder: the organ that stores the bile made in the liver, it is connected to the liver by bile ducts.
Gallstones: stones formed in the biliary tract.
Gamma globulin: a concentrated solution of antibody given through a vein to fight infections, e.g. Measles in patients with low resistance.
Gamma-linolenic acid: a polyunsaturatedfatty acid abundant in evening primrose oil.
Gammopathy: normally the gamma globulins which make up antibodies are a mixture of a huge number of different types. When nearly all gamma globulin being produced is one particular form this is called monoclonal gammopathy.
Ganglion: a group of nerve cell bodies in the peripheral nervous system
Gangrene: a condition in which tissue dies due to a loss of blood supply.
Gastralgia: colic.
Gastrectomy: an operation to remove all or part of the stomach.
Gastric: related to the stomach.
Gastrin: a hormone released after eating that causes the stomach to produce more acid.
Gastritis: iinflammation especially mucosal, of the stomach.
Gastroduodenal: stomach and gut-related.
Gastroenteritis: inflammation of the stomach and intestines, which can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea.
Gastroenterologist: a doctor who specializes in digestive diseases.
Gastroenterology: the field of medicine concerned with the digestive system.
Gastro-intestinal (GI) tract: the organs that absorb and digest food and eliminate the waste products. The GI tract includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, colon and rectum.
Gastro-oesophageal: stomach and gullet-related.
Gastro-oesophageal reflux: acid juices regurgitated up the gullet.Further info.
Gastroscope: an endoscope for the stomach.
Gastrostomy: a surgical procedure to create an artificial opening in the stomach.
Genes: formed from DNA and carried on thechromosomes, genes direct the activities of cells. They are responsible for the inherited characteristics which distinguish one individual from another. Each human individual has an estimated 100,000 separate genes.
Gene therapy: a method of treatment for genetic disorders which involves making correct copies of the gene in question and then transporting them into the cells of the body.
Genetic markers: harmless variations in theDNA that lie close to the site of a disrupted gene which may be used for tracking the condition through a family.
Genitalia: sexual organs like the penis, vagina, testicles, and clitoris.
Genitourinary: genital and urinary organ-related.
Genome: an organism's entire genetic code.
Genotype: the genetic makeup of an individual organism, determined by the sequence of nucleotides in its genes.
Genu valgum: knock-knee.
Genu varum: bow-leg.
Germicide: germ-killer.
Gestation: pregnancy.
Giant cell arteritis: seetemporal arteritis.
Giardiasis: infection with the parasite Giardia lamblia from contaminated food or water that usually causes diarrhea.
Gingivitis: inflammation of the gingival tissue.
Gland: a structure of specialized cells that secrete fluids either directly into the blood or through a duct.
Glaucoma: disease of the eye characterised by increased intra-ocular pressure due to restricted outflow of the aqueous humour through the aqueous veins and Schlemm's canal. Further info.
Glomerular filtration rate (GFR): the measure of the kidneys' ability to filter and remove waste products.
Glomeruli: the network of tiny blood vessels in the kidneys where the blood is filtered and waste products are removed.
Glomerulonephritis: acute kidney inflammation.Further info.
Glossitis: tongue inflammation.
Glossodynia: pain in the tongue.
Glottis: voice box.
Glucagon: hormone produced by the pancreas that stimulates the breakdown of glycogen into glucose.
Glucose: a sugar that occurs naturally in the body.
Gluten: cereal protein.
Glycogen: is the form in which carbohydrate is stored in the body before being broken down to glucose.
Glycolysis: an energy producing process in the muscle.
Glycoprotein: a conjugate molecule made up of both protein and carbohydrate components.
Glycoside: carbohydrate.
Glycosuria: sugar in the urine.
Goitre: the swelling of the thyroid gland in the neck.
Golfer's elbow: the medical name for it is 'medial epicondylitis'.
Gonadal: testicle-related.
Gonadotropin: a hormone that promotes gonad (sex gland) growth and function.
Gonadotropic: stimulating sperm production.
Gonioscopy: eye examination.
Gonorrhea: a common sexually transmitted bacterial infection. Symptoms include difficulty urinating, a greenish-yellow discharge and itching, burning or tenderness around the vagina or urethra.
Gout: an inherited disease due to too much uric acid in the body. It is one of the most painful of all forms of rheumatism or arthritis, but is also the most easily treated form. Women are very rarely affected by this disease.Further info.
Graft: is tissue transplanted to a body part that needs it.
Graft rejection: rarely, when a patient has an allogeneic bone marrow transplant, the new bone marrow will fail to start producing blood cells. This is called graft rejection. It may be possible to do a second transplant.
Graft versus host disease (GVHD): a common, and serious, complication of bone marrow transplantation. Some of the donor's immune cells reject the patient's own cells as foreign. The skin, liver and gut may be affected.
Grand mal: epileptic seizure.
Granulocyte: a type of white blood cell. They protect the body against infection by seeking out and killing micro-organisms.
Granulocytopenia: lack of white blood cells which increases risk of severe bacterial infection.
Granulomatous arteritis: seetemporal arteritis.
Gravidity: pregnancy.
Greenstick Fracture: a bone break in which the bone is bent but broken only on the outside.
Growth factors: a complex family of proteins produced by the body to control growth, division and maturation of blood cells by the bone marrow. Some are available as products of genetic engineering, and are used clinically to stimulate normal white cell production following chemotherapy or bone marrow transplantation.
Growth hormone: a biochemical secreted by a gland in the brain which controls growth and is of particular importance during adolescence.
Growth factor: one of many intercellular regulatory molecules that affects cell proliferation and maturation in various tissues.
Guillain-Barre syndrome: a condition which affects the nervous system usually affecting the motor nervous system which makes the muscles work, rather than the sensory nervous system which lets you feel things. It paralyses any muscles it affects, stopping them from working.Further info.
Gynaecomastia: development of breasts in men

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