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November 22, 2009
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 Penis Prosthesis Main Article |  Glossary |  Penis Prosthesis Index 

Penis Prosthesis Glossary of Terms

The following are health and medical definitions of terms that appear in the Penis Prosthesis article.

Anemia: The condition of having less than the normal number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. The oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood is, therefore, decreased.
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Anxiety: A feeling of apprehension and fear characterized by physical symptoms such as palpitations , sweating, and feelings of stress . Anxiety disorders are serious medical illnesses that affect approximately 19 million American adults. These disorders fill people's lives with overwhelming anxiety and fear. Unlike the relatively mild, brief anxiety caused by a stressful event such as a business presentation or a first date, anxiety disorders are chronic, relentless, and can grow progressively worse if not treated.
See the entire definition of Anxiety

Blood: The familiar red fluid in the body that contains white and red blood cells, platelets, proteins, and other elements. The blood is transported throughout the body by the circulatory system. Blood functions in two directions: arterial and venous. Arterial blood is the means by which oxygen and nutrients are transported to tissues while venous blood is the means by which carbon dioxide and metabolic by-products are transported to the lungs and kidneys, respectively, for removal from the body.

Cancer: An abnormal growth of cells which tend to proliferate in an uncontrolled way and, in some cases, to metastasize (spread).
See the entire definition of Cancer

Cell: The basic structural and functional unit in people and all living things. Each cell is a small container of chemicals and water wrapped in a membrane .
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Colon: The part of the large intestine that runs from the cecum to the rectum as a long hollow tube that serves to remove water from digested food and let the remaining material, solid waste called stool , move through it to the rectum and leave the body through the anus . .
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Colon cancer: A malignancy that arises from the inner lining of the colon . Most, if not all, of these cancers develop from colonic polyps . Removal of these precancerous polyps can prevent colon cancer.
See the entire definition of Colon cancer

Condition: The term "condition" has a number of biomedical meanings including the following:

  1. An unhealthy state, such as in "this is a progressive condition."
  2. A state of fitness, such as "getting into condition."
  3. Something that is essential to the occurrence of something else; essentially a "precondition."
  4. As a verb: to cause a change in something so that a response that was previously associated with a certain stimulus becomes associated with another stimulus; to condition a person, as in behavioral conditioning.

Congenital: Present at birth. A condition that is congenital is one that is present at birth. There are numerous uses of "congenital" in medicine. There are, for example, congenital abnormalities. (For more examples, see below.)
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Depression : An illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts, that affects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels about oneself, and the way one thinks about things. A depressive disorder is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be wished away. People with a depressive disease cannot merely "pull themselves together" and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people with depression.
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Diabetes: Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus . Diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus share the name "diabetes" because they are both conditions characterized by excessive urination (polyuria).
See the entire definition of Diabetes

Dysfunction: Difficult function or abnormal function.
See the entire definition of Dysfunction

Ejaculate: To ejaculate is to release semen during an orgasm in a male.
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Ejaculation: Ejection of sperm and seminal fluid.

Erectile dysfunction: A common men's health problem characterized by the consistent inability to sustain an erection sufficient for sexual intercourse or the inability to achieve ejaculation , or both. Impotence can vary. It can involve a total inability to achieve an erection or ejaculation, an inconsistent ability to do so, or a tendency to sustain only very brief erections. Erectile dysfunction is also called impotence ,
See the entire definition of Erectile dysfunction back to top

Leukemia : Cancer of the blood cells. The growth and development of the blood cells are abnormal. Strictly speaking, leukemia should refer only to cancer of the white blood cells (the leukocytes) but in practice it can apply to malignancy of any cellular element in the blood or bone marrow, as in red cell leukemia (erythroleukemia).
See the entire definition of Leukemia

Lubricant: An oily or slippery substance. A vaginal lubricant may be helpful for women who feel pain during intercourse because of vaginal dryness.

Medicaid: State programs of public assistance to persons regardless of age whose income and resources are insufficient to pay for health care. The United States federal government provides matching funds to the state Medicaid programs.

Medicare: The United States government's health insurance program for:

  • "senior citizens" -- people 65 years of age or older,
  • certain younger people with specific disabilities, and
  • people with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) -- permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a transplant.

See the entire definition of Medicare

Numb: Numb, or numbness is a loss of the sensation of feeling in an area of the body. Numbness results from damage to, or impaired function of, the nerves that supply the affected area. The function of the nerves may be impaired by numerous causes including some chronic diseases ( diabetes mellitus , thyroid disease, migraine ), trauma , toxins, decreased blood supply due to atherosclerosis or other conditions, electrolyte imbalances, and pressure on the spinal nerves from herniated discs or other diseases of the spine .
See the entire definition of Numb

Orgasm: The climax of coitus, consisting of a series of involuntary muscle contractions in the anus, lower pelvic muscles, and sexual organs, accompanied by a sudden release of endorphins providing a feeling of euphoria.
See the entire definition of Orgasm

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pain has both physical and emotional components. The physical part of pain results from nerve stimulation. Pain may be contained to a discrete area, as in an injury, or it can be more diffuse, as in disorders like fibromyalgia . Pain is mediated by specific nerve fibers that carry the pain impulses to the brain where their conscious appreciation may be modified by many factors.
See the entire definition of Pain

Penis: The external male sex organ used to copulate and ejaculate semen and to convey urine outside the body. In Latin, the word "penis" originally meant "a tail ." The Latin "penis" is related to the verb pendere meaning "to hang down."
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Prescription: A physician's order for the preparation and administration of a drug or device for a patient. A prescription has several parts. They include the superscription or heading with the symbol "R" or "Rx", which stands for the word recipe (meaning, in Latin, to take); the inscription, which contains the names and quantities of the ingredients; the subscription or directions for compounding the drug; and the signature which is often preceded by the sign "s" standing for signa (Latin for mark), giving the directions to be marked on the container.

Priapism: Abnormally persistent erection of the penis in the absence of sexual desire. Priapism can occur in persons with sickle cell anemia .
See the entire definition of Priapism

Prostate: A gland within the male reproductive system that is located just below the bladder. Chestnut shaped, the prostate surrounds the beginning of the urethra, the canal that empties the bladder.
See the entire definition of Prostate

Semen: The fluid that is released through the penis during orgasm. Semen is made up of fluid and of sperm. The fluid comes from the prostate, seminal vesicle and other sex glands. The sperm are manufactured in the testicles. The seminal fluid helps transport the sperm during orgasm. Seminal fluid contains sugar as an energy source for sperm.
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Side effects: Problems that occur when treatment goes beyond the desired effect. Or problems that occur in addition to the desired therapeutic effect.
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Surgery: The word "surgery" has multiple meanings. It is the branch of medicine concerned with diseases and conditions which require or are amenable to operative procedures. Surgery is the work done by a surgeon. By analogy, the work of an editor wielding his pen as a scalpel is s form of surgery. A surgery in England (and some other countries) is a physician's or dentist's office.
See the entire definition of Surgery back to top

 Penis Prosthesis Main Article |  Glossary |  Penis Prosthesis Index 




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  • Diabetic Neuropathy - Diabetic neuropathy is a complication of diabetes causing damage to the nerves. Learn how to recognize the warning signs and treatment for diabetic neuropathy on MedicineNet.com.
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Penis Pump

What is erectile dysfunction?

Erectile dysfunction (ED), also known as impotence, is the inability to achieve or sustain an erection for satisfactory sexual activity. Erectile dysfunction is different from other conditions that interfere with sexual intercourse, such as lack of sexual desire and problems with ejaculation and orgasm. This article focuses on the evaluation and treatment of erectile dysfunction.

How common is erectile dysfunction?

Erectile dysfunction (ED, impotence) varies in severity; some men have a total inability to achieve an erection, others have an inconsistent ability to achieve an erection, and still others can sustain only brief erections. The variations in severity of erectile dysfunction make estimating its frequency difficult. Many men also are reluctant to discuss erectile dysfunction with their doctors, and thus the condition is under-diagnosed. Nevertheless, experts have estimated that erectil...

Read the Erectile Dysfunction (Impotence) article »










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