Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

congenital heart disease

(Encyclopedia)congenital heart disease, any defect in the heart present at birth. There is evidence that some congenital heart defects are inherited, but the cause of most cases is unknown. One known cause is infec...

coronary artery disease

(Encyclopedia)coronary artery disease, condition that results when the coronary arteries are narrowed or occluded, most commonly by atherosclerotic deposits of fibrous and fatty tissue. Coronary artery disease is t...

sexually transmitted disease

(Encyclopedia)sexually transmitted disease (STD) or venereal disease, term for infections acquired mainly through sexual contact. Five diseases were traditionally known as venereal diseases: gonorrhea, syphilis, an...

sickle cell disease

(Encyclopedia)sickle cell disease or sickle cell anemia, inherited disorder of the blood in which the oxygen-carrying hemoglobin pigment in erythrocytes (red blood cells) is abnormal. This “hemoglobin-S” crysta...

pelvic inflammatory disease

(Encyclopedia)pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), infection of the female reproductive organs, usually resulting from infection with the bacteria that cause chlamydia or gonorrhea. The infection typically first affe...

Browse by Subject