Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

323 results found

Vitus, Saint

(Encyclopedia)Vitus, Saint vīˈtəs [key], 4th cent.?, Sicilian martyr. Vitus is invoked against diseases including epilipsy, nervous disorders, and St. Vitus' Dance (Sydenham's chorea). He is one of the Fourteen ...

limerick, in poetry

(Encyclopedia)limerick, type of humorous verse. It is always short, often nonsensical, and sometimes ribald. Of unknown origin, the limerick is popular rather than literary and has even been used in advertising. Th...

mushroom poisoning

(Encyclopedia)mushroom poisoning, fungal poisoning caused by ingestion of certain mushrooms (fungal organisms), most commonly Amanita phalloides and Amanita muscaria and related species. Symptoms, caused by toxic p...

wake

(Encyclopedia)wake, watch kept over a dead body, usually during the night preceding burial. Ancient peoples in various parts of the world observed the custom. As an ancient ritual, it was rooted in a concern that n...

aphasia

(Encyclopedia)aphasia əfāˈzhə [key], language disturbance caused by a lesion of the brain, making an individual partially or totally impaired in his ability to speak, write, or comprehend the meaning of spoken ...

dermatology

(Encyclopedia)dermatology dûrmətŏlˈəjē [key], branch of medicine concerned with diagnosis and treatment of diseases and disorders of the skin. Dermatologists also study the structure and function of the skin,...

Prince, Morton

(Encyclopedia)Prince, Morton, 1854–1929, American physician, b. Boston, M.D. Harvard, 1879. He specialized in neurology and abnormal psychology as a physician in Boston and as a teacher at Tufts (1902–12) and H...

prophylaxis

(Encyclopedia)prophylaxis prōˌfĭlăkˈsĭs [key], measures designed to prevent the occurrence of disease or its dissemination. Some examples of prophylaxis are immunization against serious diseases such as small...

vigil

(Encyclopedia)vigil vĭjˈəl [key] [Lat.,=watch], in Christian calendars, eve of a feast, a day of penitential preparation. In ancient times worshipers gathered for vespers before a great feast and then waited out...

gynecology

(Encyclopedia)gynecology gīnˌəkŏlˈəjē [key], branch of medicine specializing in the disorders of the female reproductive system. Modern gynecology deals with menstrual disorders, menopause, infectious diseas...