1. Role of Pathology in Medicine Flashcards
what is pathology?
the scientific study of medicine
what is a disease?
an abnormality of the body that causes loss of normal health
what allows diseases to be better understood and diagnosed?
the fact that they have a set of characteristic features
what is histology?
the study of tissues
what is cytology?
the study of individual cells, but not in the context of the entire tissue, eg. PAP smears
what aspects are investigated in the scientific study of a disease?
- epidemiology
- aetiology
- anatomical changes
- biochemical changes
- functional changes
- natural history
- prognosis
what does the prefix ana- mean?
the absence of something
what does the prefix dys- mean?
disordered
what does the prefix hyper- mean?
excess or over normal
what does the prefix hypo- mean?
deficiency below normal
what does the prefix meta- mean?
change from one state to another
what does the suffix -itis mean?
inflammatory process
what does the suffix -oma mean?
tumour
what does the suffix -osis mean?
state or condition
what does the suffix -oid mean?
bearing a resemblance to
what does the suffix -penia mean?
reduction in number
what does the suffix -cytosis mean?
increase in number
what does the suffix -ectasis mean?
dilation
what does the suffix -plasia mean?
disorder of growth
what does the suffix -opathy mean?
abnormal state lacking specific characteristics
what is hypertrophy?
non-tumorous enlargement of an organ or tissue as a result of an increase in the size rather than the number of cells
what is hyperplasia?
the enlargement of an organ or tissue caused by an increase in the reproduction rate of its cells, often as an initial stage in the development of cancer.
what is a fistula?
an abnormal connection between an organ, vessel or intestine and another structure. usually results from injury or surgery, but can also be due to infection or inflammation
what is a thrombus?
a blood clot that stays at the site of clotting
what is an embolus
a piece of clotted blood that breaks away from the main thrombus
what is metastasis?
the process by which a cancer spreads from the place that it first arose as a primary tumour to distant locations in the body
what is differentiation (in cancer)
refers to how mature cancer cells are. differentiated tumour cells resemble normal cells and tend to grow and spread at a slower rate than undifferentiated cells
on what basis are tumours classified?
based on whether they are benign or malignant and their structure of origin
what id digital pathology?
a fusion of computing and histopathology, provides image recognition and processing
