Children's Neuronet

When children are injured or ill, parents are distraught and frantic. When a child is diagnosed with a long-term, debilitating or terminal condition, comprehension seems worlds away, and acceptance is long in coming. Fortunately, most conditions or injuries are neither permanent nor serious, but they can all be nerve-wracking. While far from complete and can be applied to any age group, below is a list of common medical and treatment terms and phrases that a parent or guardian might encounter regarding the young one’s medical condition and a brief encapsulation of what each means.

ABATEMENT: Decrease in severity or intensity, a plateau.

ACUTE: Usually, this infers a brief but fairly intense instance of a condition, as in “acute pain.”
Bedridden: Unable to move about under one’s own power; unable to leave a bed.

AMBULATORY: Able to walk by himself, not bedridden.

ASYMPTOMATIC: Without symptoms, usually referring to someone who did exhibit symptoms.

CAT or CT SCAN: A diagnostic test that requires simultaneous x-rays from different angles to present a multi-dimensional and highly defined picture of an organ or body part.

CHRONIC: Longer lasting existence of a condition, as in “chronic back pain” that lasts for weeks or months. It doesn’t necessarily mean permanent but implies more a condition more habitual and reoccurring. The condition is usually sporadic, although the intermittency can be in intensity.

ETIOLOGY: Study of the cause of a specific disease or condition.

GUARDED:  Cautiously observed. Less serious than “grave” but not as stable or hopeful as “good.”
Idiopathic: Of unknown origin.

HYPERGLYCEMIA: Too much sugar in the blood.

HYPOGLYCEMIA: Too little sugar in the blood.

PALLIATIVE: A medication prescribed for relief of symptoms, not for its curative abilities. For example, a palliative for environmental allergies might be anti-histamines. They cure symptoms but do not cure the allergy itself. A palliative is prescribed when no cure is available.

PEDIATRIC: Pertaining to youths.

PROGNOSIS: The projection of outcome, potentiality, especially when discussing chances of recovery.

PROTOCOL: The method or outline of treatment steps for a given condition. The protocol for one condition varies greatly with those of other conditions, but very rarely is there no action step that can be taken. Even making a young patient more comfortable is part of a treatment protocol.

REBOUND REACTION: A flaring up of symptoms after medication is suddenly ceased.

REMISSION: A clearing up of symptoms. Different than “cured,” for a disease in remission can redevelop.

STABLE: While the condition may be grave, serious or guarded, fluctuations have ceased, and the patient’s condition is steady and relatively predictable.

SUBLUXATION: A slight or relatively minor dislocation of a joint.

TRIGGER: The causation point of an event, such as in “Dust inhalation can trigger an allergic reaction.”

VERTIGO: Dizziness, especially when feeling as though one’s surroundings are moving or rotating.

The author of this article is Holly Miller, who writes for Coupon Croc. Visit us for discounts on supplements, vitamins, fitness equipment and everything you need to stay healthy.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }