| edema | <clinical sign> The presence of abnormally large amounts of fluid in the intercellular tissue spaces of the body, usually applied to demonstrable accumulation of excessive fluid in the subcutaneous tissues. Oedema may be localised, due to venous or lymphatic obstruction or to increased vascular permeability or it may be systemic due to heart failure or renal disease. Collections of oedema fluid are designated according to the site, for example ascites (peritoneal cavity), hydrothorax (pleural cavity) and hydropericardium (pericardial sac). Massive generalised oedema is called anasarca. Origin: Gr. Oide ma = swelling (18 Nov 1997) |
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| edema, cardiac | A manifestation of congestive heart failure caused by increased venous and capillary pressures and often associated with the retention of sodium by the kidneys. (12 Dec 1998) |
| artificial passive immunity | See: acquired immunity. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive | Neither spontaneous nor active, not produced by active efforts. Origin: L. Passivus (18 Nov 1997) |
| passive agglutination | Agglutination of particles that have been coated with soluble antigen, by antiserum specific for the adsorbed antigen. Synonym: indirect agglutination. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive-aggressive behaviour | Apparently compliant behaviour, with intrinsic obstructive or stubborn qualities, to cover deeply felt aggressive feelings that cannot be more directly expressed. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive-aggressive personality | A personality disorder in which aggressive feelings are manifested in passive ways, especially through mild obstructionism and stubbornness. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive-aggressive personality disorder | A personality disorder characterised by an indirect resistance to demands for adequate social and occupational performance; anger and opposition to authority and the expectations of others that is expressed covertly by obstructionism, procrastination, stubbornness, dawdling, forgetfulness, and intentional inefficiency. (12 Dec 1998) |
| passive anaphylaxis | A reaction resulting from inoculation of antigen in an animal previously inoculated intravenously with specific antiserum from another animal, a latent period being required between the two inoculations. Synonym: antiserum anaphylaxis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive atelectasis | The pulmonary collapse that occurs due to a space-occupying intrathoracic process such as pneumothorax or hydrothorax. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive clot | A clot formed in an aneurysmal sac consequent to the cessation or slowing of circulation through the aneurysm. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive congestion | Congestion caused by obstruction or slowing of the venous drainage, resulting in partial stagnation of blood in the capillaries and venules. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive cutaneous anaphylaxis | An evanescent cutaneous reaction occurring when antibody is injected into a local area on the skin and antigen is subsequently injected intravenously along with a dye. The dye makes the rapidly occurring capillary dilatation and increased vascular permeability readily visible by leakage into the reaction site. Pca is a sensitive reaction for detecting very small quantities of antibodies and is also a method for studying the mechanisms of immediate hypersensitivity. (12 Dec 1998) |
| passive cutaneous anaphylaxis test | An animal is injected intradermally with antibody (usually IgE) and subsequently challenged intravenously with a mixture of antigen and Evans blue dye 24-48 hours later. A dark blue area indicates a positive reaction due to the leakage of the dye at the site of antigen-antibody reactions. (05 Mar 2000) |
| passive diffusion | See: facilitated transport. (05 Mar 2000) |