| wedge-tailed | <ornithology, zoology> Having a tail which has the middle pair of feathers longest, the rest successively and decidedly shorter, and all more or less attenuate; said of certain birds. Wedge-tailed eagle, an Australian eagle (Aquila audax) which feeds on various small species of kangaroos, and on lambs; called also mountain eagle, bold eagle, and eagle hawk. Wedge-tailed gull, an arctic gull (Rhodostethia rosea) in which the plumage is tinged with rose; called also Ross's gull. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
|---|---|
| pulmonary capillary wedge pressure | The pressure obtained when a catheter is passed from the right side of the heart into the pulmonary artery as far as it will go and "wedged" into an end artery. PCWP is measured by letting pulmonary blood flow guide a balloon-flotation catheter into a small pulmonary end artery. The pressure distal to the wedged catheter is an approximation of cardiac left atrial pressure. The pressure recorded with the balloon deflated is pulmonary artery pressure. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pulmonary wedge pressure | The blood pressure as recorded after wedging a catheter in a small pulmonary artery; believed to reflect the pressure in the pulmonary capillaries. (12 Dec 1998) |
| quartz wedge | <microscopy> A compensator consisting of a gradual wedge of quartz of such orientation and dimensions as to show at least several orders of retardation colours as illustrated by the Michel Levy scale of retardation colours and birefringence vs. Thickness of specimen. The Babinet compensator employs two opposing quartz wedges, calibrated in terms of retardation. (05 Aug 1998) |
| ovarian wedge resection | <gynaecology, procedure> The surgical removal of a portion of a polycystic ovary to induce ovulation. (05 Jan 1998) |
| acquired platelet function defect | <haematology> Platelet function can be affected by a number of different disease processes including polycythaemia vera, leukaemia, myelofibrosis, renal failure, multiple myeloma and some medications (for example penicillins, salicylates, phenothiazines). Disturbed blood clotting can be manifested by: easy bruising, bleeding gums, nosebleeds, abnormal vaginal bleeding, rectal bleeding, skin rash, vomiting blood, coughing up blood or blood in the urine. A measure of bleeding time and coagulation profile will be part of the evaluation. (29 Dec 1997) |
| aortic septal defect | A small congenital opening between the aorta and pulmonary artery about 1 cm above the semilunar valves, e.g., aorticopulmonary window. Synonym: aorticopulmonary window. (05 Mar 2000) |
| aortopulmonary septal defect | A congenital anomaly in which there is abnormal communication between the ascending aorta and pulmonary artery just above the semilunar valves. (12 Dec 1998) |
| atrial septal defect | <cardiology> An inherited condition where there is nonclosure of the foramen ovale at birth, resulting in congenital heart disease. Usually asymptomatic until the third or fourth decades of life. Symptoms include exertional shortness of breath, fatigue and palpitations. Acronym: ASD (12 Jan 1998) |
| atrial ventricular canal defect | A defect caused by deficient or absent septal tissue immediately above and below the normal level of the atrioventricular valves, including the region normally occupied by the A-V septum in hearts with two ventricles. The A-V valves are abnormal to a varying degree. (05 Mar 2000) |
| birth defect | Defect present at birth; sometimes referred to as congenital defect. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ventricular septal defect | <cardiology, embryology> A congenital heart defect where an abnormal opening exists in the ventricular septum. Blood flows from the higher pressure left ventricle (through the defect) into the right ventricle. (12 Jan 1998) |
| Gerbode defect | <cardiology, embryology> A defect in the interventricular portion of the membranous septum, associated with a communication between the right ventricle and the right atrium through an abnormality in the tricuspid valve. (05 Mar 2000) |
| mass defect | <chemistry, radiobiology> Of a nucleus, the difference between the sum of the masses of the constituent nucleons and the mass of the nucleus. (16 Dec 1997) |
| partial endocardial cushion defect | <radiology> Incomplete endocardial cushion defect components: ostium primum atrial septal defect, cleft in anterior mitral valve findings: right AV valve is usually normal, with or without mitral insufficiency, communication between LA_RA or LV-RA, occasionally LV-RV Cf: complete endocardial cushion defect (12 Dec 1998) |