| instantaneous rate | <epidemiology> In a short time interval (e.g a week), the number of events (e.g. Births in the UK) taking place during the interval is approximately proportional to the length of the interval. The constant of proportionality is the rate at which these events occur. This argument becomes more and more exact as the length of the time interval becomes shorter and shorter. When the time interval has shrunk to an instant, the rate has become an `instantaneous rate'. A bad term; just call it a rate. (05 Dec 1998) |
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| integrated rate expression | An equation of a chemical or enzyme-catalyzed reaction for the entire progress curve. (05 Mar 2000) |
| overall response rate | <pharmacology> Sum of complete and partial tumour responses seen in a study, divided by the number of evaluable patients. (05 Jan 1998) |
| total fertility rate | <epidemiology> The number of children an average women would have assuming that she lives her full reproductive lifetime. (05 Dec 1998) |
| erythrocyte sedimentation rate | <investigation> A test that measures the rate at which red blood cells settle through a column of liquid. A non-specific index of inflammation. Acronym: ESR (11 Nov 1997) |
| fatality rate | The death rate observed in a designated series of persons affected by a simultaneous event such as a disaster. (05 Mar 2000) |
| uniform rate hypothesis | <biology> This states that any two evolving organismal lineages diverge from a common ancestor at a constant rate with respect to each other. (09 Oct 1997) |
| five year survival rate | The proportion of patients still alive five years after a diagnosis or form of treatment is completed. Usually applied to statistics of survival of cancer patients, since after five years, recurrences are much less likely to occur. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fixed-rate pacemaker | An artificial pacemaker that emits electrical stimuli at a constant frequency. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fixed rate pulse generator | A generator in which the rate of discharge is independent of the natural activity of the heart. Synonym: fixed rate pulse generator. (05 Mar 2000) |
| flow rate | The amount of water that moves through an area (usually pipe) in a given period of time. (05 Dec 1998) |
| foetal death rate | The number of foetal deaths divided by the sum of live births and foetal deaths occurring in the same population during the same time period. Synonym: stillbirth rate. (05 Mar 2000) |
| foetal heart rate | In the foetus, the number of heart beats per minute, normally 120 to 160. (05 Mar 2000) |
| foetal mortality rate | <epidemiology> The ratio of foetal deaths divided by the sum of the births (the live births + the foetal deaths) in that year. In the United States, the foetal mortality rate plummeted from 19.2 per 1,000 births in 1950 to 9.2 per 1,000 births in 1980. (12 Dec 1998) |
| 5-year relative survival rate | <statistics> The likelihood that a patient will not die from causes associated with his or her cancer for at least 5 years after diagnosis. This is the standard many professionals use when determining someone a survivor of cancer. (16 Dec 1997) |