Exam 1 Week 3 Flashcards
Cauduceus
Staff with two snakes and wings wrapped around it.
Symbol of the Romans’ god Mercury who was messenger of the gods, god of science and commerce, and patron of travelers and thieves.
It is not the symbol of medicine. It is the symbol of the medical corps.
Aesculapian Staff
Staff of Aesculapius
Proper symbol of medicine.
It has no wings and just one snake encircling the staff.
Aesculapius was the Greek god of medicine who carried a staff.
Temples to Aesculapius were filled with snakes since the shedding of skin by snakes was considered a symbol of becoming rejuvenated and healthy again.
Myth
Ritualized story
Achilles Tendon
Large tendon of the heel
Achilles = Greek Hero - Invulnerable to injury except in his heel
Aesculapian Staff
Symbol of medicine (One snake, no wings)
Aesculapius = God of Medicine
Aphrodisiac
Substance alleged to increase sexual desire
Aphrodite = Goddess of Love and Beauty
Arachnoid
Web-like middle lining for the spinal cord
Arachne = Goddess of Weaving
Atlas
Atlas Cervical Vertebrae
First vertebra of the neck that holds up the skull
Atlas = Titan who holds up the Heavens
Atropine
Potential poison that is used to dry respiratory secretions and prevent heart from beating too slow during surgery
(Found in deadly nightshade and can be a poison)
(Atropos = Fate that cuts thread of life)
Staff of Caduceus
Symbol of army medical corps and incorrect symbol of medicine
(Has two snake and wings)
(Caduceus = Staff of Mercury, Messenger of Gods)
Cesarean or C-section (or cesarian)
Cutting the abdomen open and uterus to retrieve a baby
Cesarean = Method of Julius Caesar’s Birth
Cyclopia
cyclops deformity
Development abnormality when a baby is borne with one, centrally located eye in forehead
(Cyclops = A one-eyed monster)
Gigantism
Huge body size caused by excessive growth hormone secretion in a young individual
(Giants = Large Superhumans)
Hermaphrodite
Developmental abnormality that produces an individual with both male and female sex organs.
(Hermaphroditus = Male boy God who became united with a Nymph (Salmacis)) - They became one, both boy and girl
Hygiene
Practice of healthy habits
Hygeia = Goddess of Health
Hymen
Membrane at entrance of vagina
Hymen = God of marriage
Iris
Colored part of the eye
Iris = Goddess of Rainbows
Medicine
A healing substance
Meditrine = Daughter of Aesculapius
Morphology
Study of form, structure, and shapes
Morpheus = God of dreams and forms; -ology = study of
Morphine
Drug that can cause strange dreams
Morpheus = God of dreams and forms
Nymph
Developing form (either sex) of “bugs”
Nymph = (Young Girl) Goddess of Nature
Nymphomania
Excessive sexual desire in a female
Nymph = (Young Girl) Goddess of Nature
Panacea
A cure-all (a hoax)
Panacea = Daughter of Aesculapius
Priapism
An abnormal persistent erection of the penis
Priapus = Male god of procreation
Psychology
Study of the human mind and conscious self
Psyche = Goddess of thought and judgement
Symbol Rx
Pharmacy symbol
Recipe = Horus, Sun god of health
Satyriasis
Excessive sexual desire in a male
Satyrs = Male fertility wood spirit
Euthanasia
Quiet, painless death
Thanatos = Death
Venereal
Transmitted by sexual intercourse
Venus = Goddess of Sexual love
Arachnophobia
extreme or irrational fear of spiders.
Arachne = Goddess of Weaving; -phobia = fear
