Category: H

The plant Conium maculatum, native to Britain and central Europe. It is a source of the poisonous alkaloid coniine. A toxic plant from the parsley family. Its poison is extremely lethal, and there have been cases of children being poisoned by using the plant’s hollow stems as musical pipes or pea shooters. In ancient Greece,…

Fusion of the fifth lumbar vertebra to one side only of the sacrum. The abnormal development of one half of the fifth lumbar vertebra so that it is fused with the sacrum.  

A chemical derivative of hemoglobin formed by removal of the protein part of the molecule, oxidation of the iron atom, and combination with an acid to form a salt (compare hematin). Chlorohemin forms characteristic crystals, the identification of which provides the basis of a chemical test for blood stains. A brownish-red crystalline salt of heme…

A colorless crystalline compound extracted from logwood (Haematoxylon campechianum) and used in various histological stains. When oxidized, hematoxylin is converted to hematein, which imparts a blue color to certain parts of cells, especially cell nuclei. Heidenhain’s iron hematoxylin is used to stain sections that are to be photographed, since it gives great clarity’ at high…

The accumulation of menstrual blood in the vagina because the hymen at the entrance to the vagina lacks an opening. Retention of menstrual blood in the vagina, caused by an imperforate hymen.  

A mixture of potassium bichromate, sodium sulfate, mercuric chloride, formaldehyde, and distilled water, used in the preservation of bone marrow.  

A test for the presence of protein (albumin) in the urine. A quantity of urine is carefully poured onto the same quantity of pure nitric acid in a test tube. A white ring forms at the junction of the liquids if albumin is present. However, a similar result may be obtained if the urine contains…

A rare mental illness of childhood. Abnormalities of behavior may be the only sign at first but the condition progresses to psychotic manifestations, such as stereotypies and hallucinations, and ultimately to dementia. Nearly always a physical cause can be found. The illness progresses to severe incapacity or death.  

The narrow opening between the scala vestibuli and the scala tympani at the lip of the cochlea in the ear.  

A depression on both sides of the chest wall of a child between the pectoral muscles and the lower margin of the ribcage. It is caused by exaggerated suction of the diaphragm when breathing in and develops in conditions in which the airways are partially obstructed or when the lungs are abnormally congested due to…