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necrotizing fasciitis

(Encyclopedia)necrotizing fasciitis, a quickly progressing infection of the skin that spreads along the fascia, the tissue that covers the muscles. (Necrotizing infections that spread along the outer skin layers ar...

carotene

(Encyclopedia)carotene kârˈətēnˌ [key], long-chained, unsaturated hydrocarbon found as a pigment in many higher plants, particularly carrots, sweet potatoes, and leafy vegetables. Carotene is thought to assist...

Brace, Charles Loring

(Encyclopedia)Brace, Charles Loring, 1826–90, American clergyman and social reformer, b. Litchfield, Conn. America's pioneer children's advocate, he founded (1853) the Children's Aid Society of New York, an organ...

tamoxifen

(Encyclopedia)tamoxifen təmŏkˈsĭfĕnˌ [key], synthetic hormone used in the treatment of breast cancer. Introduced in 1978, tamoxifen is used to prevent recurrences of cancer in women who have already undergone...

bighorn, in zoology

(Encyclopedia)bighorn or Rocky Mountain sheep, wild sheep, Ovis canadensis, of W North America, formerly plentiful in mountains from SW Canada to N Mexico. Indiscriminate hunting, disease, and scarcity of food enor...

vertigo

(Encyclopedia)vertigo vûrˈtĭgō [key], sensations of moving in space or of objects moving about a person and the resultant difficulty in maintaining equilibrium. True vertigo, as distinguished from faintness, li...

meningitis

(Encyclopedia)meningitis sĕrˌəbrōspīˈnəl [key], acute inflammation of the meninges, the membranes that cover and protect the brain and spinal cord. It can be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, or other orga...

genetic testing

(Encyclopedia)genetic testing, medical screening for genetic disorders, by examining either a person's DNA directly or a person's biochemistry or chromosomes for indirect evidence. Testing may be done to identify a...

e-commerce

(Encyclopedia)e-commerce, commerce conducted over the Internet, most often via the World Wide Web. E-commerce can apply to purchases made through the Web or to business-to-business activities such as inventory tran...

corticosteroid drug

(Encyclopedia)corticosteroid drug kôrˌtəkōstârˈoid [key], any one of several synthetic or naturally occurring substances with the general chemical structure of steroids. They are used therapeutically to mimic...