Medical Dictionary Definitions A-Z List
Medical Dictionary Definitions A - Z - «F»:
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Febrile seizure
Febrile seizure: A convulsion
that occurs in association with a rapid increase in body
temperature. Febrile seizures are common in infants and
young children and, fortunately, are usually of no lasting
importance....
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Fecal
Fecal: Relating to the feces, the stool. The excrement discharged from the intestines.
From the Latin "faex" and "faecis" meaning the dregs or sediment....
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Fecal incontinence
Fecal incontinence: Inability to hold feces in the
rectum. This is due to failure of voluntary control over the anal sphincters permitting untimely passage of feces and gas. Also called rectal incontinence....
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Fecal occult blood test
Fecal occult blood test: A test to check for hidden blood in the feces. Fecal refers to stool. Occult means hidden. Fecal occult blood may be due to a number of causes. The source of the bleeding may be anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract. Abbreviated FOBT....
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Fecalith
Fecalith: A hard stony mass of feces. A fecalith can obstruct the appendix, leading to appendicitis. Fecaliths also can obstruct diverticuli. Called also a coprolith and stercolith. From fecal + -lith for stone....
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Feces
Feces: The medical and scientific term for the "excrement discharged from the intestines."
The word "feces" (or its English version
"faeces") in Shakespeare in this context until the 17th century "feces" merely meant the "dregs or sediment" of wine ...
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Fecund
Fecund: Fruitful, abundantly fertile. Just as a writer is prolific, a woman
may be fecund, able to reproduce plentifully.
Etymology:"Fecund" comes (minus the final "us") from the Latin "fecundus" meaning fruitful. "Fecund" emphasizes abundance or rapidity in bearing offspring (or fruit).
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Fecundity
Fecundity: The ability to have children, usually lots
of them with ease.
Etymology:"Fecundity" comes from the Latin "fecundus" meaning fruitful. "Fecundity" emphasizes abundance or rapidity in bearing offspring (or fruit).
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Federal Emergency Management Agency
Federal Emergency Management Agency: Better known as FEMA, an agency of the US government dedicated to rapid response to disasters, both man-made and natural ones (such as floods, hurricanes, and earthquakes). FEMA provides financial assistance to individuals and governments to rebuild homes, busine...
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Fee for service
Fee for service (FFS): In health care, a payment mechanism in which a provider is paid for each individual service rendered to a patient....
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Feed contaminant
Feed contaminant: A substance contaminating animal feed. Contaminants in animal feed can threaten human health.
There are two classes of feed contaminants.
Contaminants that are naturally occurring -- This class of feed contaminants is made up of toxic or deleterious substances that are inherent c...
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Feedback
Feedback: Many biologic processes are
controlled by feedback, just as the temperature in a home from a furnace is regulated by a
thermostat....
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Feeding tube
Feeding tube: See: Enteral nutrition....
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Feeding, breast
Feeding, breast: See: Breastfeeding....
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Feet
Feet: The plural of foot, both an anatomic structure and a unit of measure.
As an anatomic structure, the foot is the end of the leg on which a person normally stands and walks. The foot is a particularly complex
structure made up of dozens of bones that work together with muscles
and tendons to e...
