| LAF | laminar air flow; Latin American female; leukocyte-activating factor; lymphocyte-activating factor |
|---|---|
| LAFR | laminar air flow room |
| LAFU | laminar air flow unit |
| LAL | left axillary line; Limulus amebocyte lysate; low air loss; lysosomal acid lipase |
| LALB | low air-loss bed |
North America
| paget disease | <radiology> Disease of unknown aetiology involving destruction and reparation, age greater than 40y; M:F 2:1, skull, osteoporosis circumscripta (outer table destroyed only), cotton wool appearance, increased hat size!, spine, monostotic vertebral involvment usually, pelvis, affected in 2/3 cases, consists of cortical thickening, enlargement of pubis/ischium, coarse trabecular pattern, extremities, blade of grass appearance, elevation of alk phos (up to 20X), normal calcium, normal phosphorus, complications: path fractures in 8% cases (usually femur = shepard's crook), malignant degeneration (usually osteosarcoma-50%, fibrosarcoma-25%) (12 Dec 1998) |
|---|---|
| paget disease of breast | <radiology> Form of ductal carcinoma, associated with eczematous changes of the nipple (12 Dec 1998) |
| Paget's disease | <disease, rheumatology> This is a disease of bone that initially results in the excessive resorption of bone (by osteoclasts) followed by the replacement of normal bone marrow with vascular and fibrous tissue. Many patients are asymptomatic and diagnosed by routine X-rays. (13 Nov 1997) |
| paget's disease, extramammary | A rare cutaneous neoplasm that occurs in the elderly. It develops more frequently in women and predominantly involves apocrine gland-bearing areas, especially the vulva, scrotum, and perianal areas. The lesions develop as erythematous scaly patches that progress to crusted, pruritic, erythematous plaques. The clinical differential diagnosis includes squamous cell carcinoma in situ and superficial fungal infection. It is generally thought to be an adenocarcinoma of the epidermis, from which it extends into the contiguous epithelium of hair follicles and eccrine sweat ducts. (devita jr et al., cancer: principles & practice of oncology, 3d ed, p1478) (12 Dec 1998) |
| paget's disease, mammary | An intraductal carcinoma of the breast extending to involve the nipple and areola, characterised clinically by eczema-like inflammatory skin changes and histologically by infiltration of the dermis by malignant cells (paget's cells). (12 Dec 1998) |
| Paget's disease of the nipple | <oncology, tumour> A cancer of the nipple. (16 Dec 1997) |
| vagrant's disease | Excoriations and melanoderma caused by scratching the bites of the body louse, Pediculus corporis. Synonym: Greenhow's disease, vagabond's disease, vagrant's disease. Racial melanoderma, the normally dark skin of blacks and certain other races. Senile melanoderma, cutaneous pigmentation occurring in the aged. Synonym: melasma universale. (05 Mar 2000) |
| mad cow disease | A new disease of cattle, first reported in 1986 in Great Britain, characterised clinically by apprehensive behaviour, hyperesthesia, and ataxia and histopathologically by spongiform changes in the gray-matter neuropil of the brain stem; it is thought to be caused by an agent, possibly a prion, similar to that observed as the cause of scrapie. Synonym: mad cow disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Madelung's disease | Accumulation and progressive enlargement of collections of adipose tissue in the subcutaneous tissue of the head, neck, upper trunk, and upper portions of the upper extremities; seen primarily in adult males and of unknown cause. Synonym: Launois-Bensaude syndrome, Madelung's disease, symmetric adenolipomatosis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| valvular heart disease | A general term that applies to any abnormality of one of the heart valves, tricuspid, mitral, aortic or pulmonic valves. (27 Sep 1997) |
| van Buren's disease | A disease of unknown cause in which there are plaques or strands of dense fibrous tissue surrounding the corpus cavernosum of the penis, causing deformity and painful erection; sometimes associated with Dupuytren's contracture. Synonym: penile fibromatosis, van Buren's disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Gamna's disease | <disease> A form of chronic splenomegaly characterised by conspicuous thickening of the capsule and the presence of multiple, small, rustlike, brown foci (Gamna-Gandy bodies), which contain iron; this condition may be observed in fibrocongestive splenomegaly, sickle cell disease, and some examples of haemochromatosis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Gandy-Nanta disease | <disease> Siderotic splenomegaly, probably the same as Gamna's disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Vaquez' disease | Overproduction (proliferation) of red blood cells due to bone marrow disease (myeloproferative disorder). Pv tends to evolve into acute leukaemia or a condition with the marrow replaced by scar tissue (myelofibrosis) (12 Dec 1998) |
| ragpicker's disease | A form of anthrax acquired by inhalation of dust containing Bacillus anthracis; there is an initial chill followed by pain in the back and legs, rapid respiration, dyspnea, cough, fever, rapid pulse, and extreme cardiovascular collapse. Synonym: anthrax pneumonia, ragpicker's disease, ragsorter's disease, rag-sorter's disease, wool-sorter's pneumonia, woolsorter's disease, wool-sorter's disease. (05 Mar 2000) |