| surgical procedures, elective | Surgery which could be postponed or not done at all without danger to the patient. Elective surgery includes procedures to correct non-life-threatening medical problems as well as to alleviate conditions causing psychological stress or other potential risk to patients, e.g., cosmetic or contraceptive surgery. (12 Dec 1998) |
|---|---|
| elective | Subject to the choice or decision of the patient or physician, applied to procedures that are advantageous to the patient but not urgent. (18 Nov 1997) |
| elective abortion | The planned termination of a pregnancy. (27 Sep 1997) |
| elective culture | A method of isolating microorganisms capable of utilizing a specific substrate by incubating an inoculum in a medium containing the substrate; the medium usually contains substances or has characteristics that inhibit the growth of unwanted microorganisms. Synonym: enrichment culture. (05 Mar 2000) |
| elective mutism | Mutism due to psychogenic causes. Synonym: voluntary mutism. (05 Mar 2000) |
| elective surgery | Surgery which is not needed immediately, i.e., one for a non-life-threatening disorder. (09 Oct 1997) |
| whole-body irradiation | Irradiation of the whole body with ionizing or non-ionizing radiation. It is applicable to humans or animals but not to microorganisms. (12 Dec 1998) |
| cranial irradiation | The exposure of the head to roentgen rays or other forms of radioactivity for therapeutic or preventive purposes. (12 Dec 1998) |
| hemibody irradiation | Irradiation of one half or both halves of the body in the treatment of disseminated cancer or widespread metastases. It is used to treat diffuse metastases in one session as opposed to multiple fields over an extended period. The more frequent treatment modalities are upper hemibody irradiation (uhbi) or lower hemibody irradiation (lhbi). Less common is mid-body irradiation (mbi). In the treatment of both halves of the body sequentially, hemibody irradiation permits radiotherapy of the whole body with larger doses of radiation than could be accomplished with whole-body irradiation. It is sometimes called "systemic" hemibody irradiation with reference to its use in widespread cancer or metastases. (p. Rubin et al. Cancer, vol 55, p2210, 1985) (12 Dec 1998) |
| prophylactic cranial irradiation | Radiation therapy to the head to prevent cancer from spreading to the brain. (12 Dec 1998) |
| irradiation | Treatment by ionising radiation, such as X-rays or radioactive sources such as radioactive iodine seeds. See: radiation therapy. (16 Dec 1997) |
| total body irradiation | Radiotherapy often given in several doses prior to bone marrow transplantation with the aim of killing any residual leukaemia in the patient. It is used in conjunction with high-dose anti-cancer drugs. The procedure and its side-effects will be discussed individually with the patient. (13 Nov 1997) |
| lymphatic irradiation | External or interstitial irradiation to treat lymphomas (e.g., hodgkin's and non-hodgkin's lymphomas) and lymph node metastases and also some autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. (12 Dec 1998) |
| acute brain syndrome | <syndrome> A condition of severe confusion or rapid change in brain function. This often occurs as the result of a mental illness or physical illness. Symptoms include lethargy, agitation, confusion, disorientation and delirium. (27 Sep 1997) |
| acute organic brain syndrome | <syndrome> A constellation of behavioural or psychological signs and symptoms including problems with attention, concentration, memory, confusion, anxiety, and depression caused by transient or permanent dysfunction of the brain. Synonym: acute organic brain syndrome, OBS, organic mental syndrome. (05 Mar 2000) |