Category: A

Temporary blindness in one eye, caused by problems of circulation. Loss of vision in one eye that lasts for seconds to minutes for up to 24 hours. The visual loss from amaurosis fugax is often described as if a curtain is coming down from above or across the field of vision. The usual cause is…

Blindness caused by disease of the optic nerve. Blindness, in the absence of an obvious eye lesion (e.g., that due to disease of the spine or brain). Partial or complete blindness. For example, amaurosis fugax is a condition in which loss of vision is transient. Loss of vision, either partial or complete, especially when there…

A mixture of metals, based on mercury and tin, used by dentists to fill holes in teeth. Any of a group of alloys containing mercury. In dentistry the usual ‘silver’ filling is an amalgam of silver and tin with small additions of copper, zinc, and mercury. Any alloy containing mercury. A silver-colored mixture of several…

A disc-shaped plaque of amyloid found in the brain in people who have Alzheimer’s disease.  

Inflammation of an alveolus in the lungs or the socket of a tooth. Inflammation of the alveoli, tiny air sacs in the lungs, a kind of lung and breathing disorder. A lung disease that results from an inflammation of the alveoli, which are the tiny round air sacs found at the ends of the bronchioles…

One of the walls which separate the alveoli in the lungs.  

Duct in the lung which leads from the respiratory bronchioles to the alveoli. A branch of a respiratory bronchiole that leads directly to the alveolar sacs of the lungs.  

A chemical substance used as an antacid to treat indigestion. Formula: Al(OH)3, or Al2,O3.3H2,O.  

A metallic element extracted from the ore bauxite. A light metallic element. It occurs in bauxite and other minerals and its compounds are found in low concentration in the body. Their function, if any, is unknown but they are believed to be harmful. Aluminium hydroxide is, however, a safe, slow-acting substance that is widely used…

Drug which makes blood vessels wider, used to treat impotence, prevent coagulation, and maintain babies with congenital heart conditions. A synthetic prostaglandin used to treat erectile dysfunction. A pharmacological agent with the property of inducing smooth muscle relaxation, often administered via injection into the penile region or topically applied to the opening of the urethra,…