Glossary

• Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy: a progressive fatal disease of the central nervous system of adult domestic cattle that resembles scrapie of sheep and goats and is probably caused by a prion transmitted by infected tissue in food —it is abbreviated BSE and is also called mad cow disease.

•Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy: any of a group of spongiform encephalopathies (such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, kuru, and scrapie) that are now usually considered to be caused and transmitted by prions.

• Microbes: A minute life form; a microorganism, especially a bacterium that causes disease.

• Prion Proteins: A microscopic protein particle similar to a virus but lacking nucleic acid; they are thought to be the infectious agent responsible for scrapie and certain other diseases that gradually deteriorate the nervous system.

• Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease: a rare and gradually fatal encephalopathy usually known to be caused by a prion; the symptoms of this disease are marked by the development of porous brain tissue, unexpected insanity at middle age, and gradual loss of muscular use and coordination— it is abbreviated CJD and is also called Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease.

• Bacterial Endocarditis: Infectious endocarditis caused by the entrance and infection of bacteria into the human body, leading to deformity of the heart valves.

1. Infective Endocarditis: Endocarditis caused by the infection of microorganisms, such as bacteria or fungi.

2. Non-infective Endocarditis: Endocarditis well known for by the formation of a sterile platelet and fibrin thrombi on cardiac valves and adjacent endocardium. This usually occurs when the valve or heart tissue has been traumatized, or if there is a systemic state which predisposes to hypercoagulation. Unlike its infectious cousin, infective endocarditis, cultures of the vegetations are sterile.

•Thrombi: A fibrinous clot formed in a blood vessel or in a chamber of the heart.

• Pathogens: An organism that causes disease, especially a living microorganism such as a bacterium or fungus.

• Alpha-hemolytic streptococci: Streptococci that partially destroy red blood cells nurtured on a blood culture medium, producing a green color around the cell colonies.

• Culture Medium: A liquid or gelatinous substance containing nutrients in which micro-organisms or tissues are grown for scientific purposes.

• Staphylococcus aureus: A bacterium that causes furunculosis, pyemia, osteomyelitis, suppuration of wounds, and food poisoning.

• Furunculosis: A skin condition characterized by the development of recurring boils.

• Pyemia: Septicemia (a poisoning of the blood) caused by pus-forming bacteria released from an abscess (or collection of pus).

• Osteomyelitis: Inflammation of bone and bone marrow.

• Suppuration of Wounds: A discharge of pus from a wound.

• Enterococci: A streptococcus (one that usually does not cause disease) that inhabits the intestine.

• Candida albicans: n : A parasitic fungus that can infect the mouth, the skin, the intestines or the vagina.

• Pseudomonas: A category of gram-negative, rod-shaped, mostly aerobic flagellated bacteria, commonly found in soil, water, and decaying matter and including some species that are plant and animal pathogens.

• Gram-negative: Of, relating to, or being a bacterium that does not retain the violet stain used in Gram's method.

• Aerobic Bacteria: Living or occurring only in the presence of oxygen.

• Flaggella: A whip-like movement that is present in bacteria.

• Streptococcus bovis: part of the natural flora of the bowel that tends to present when a patient has bowel cancer.

• Hacek organisms: one of a set of slow-growing Gram negative bacteria that form a normal part of the human flora. They are a frequent cause of inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, (endocarditis) in children.

The name is formed from their initials:

• Haemophilus aphrophilus and Haemophilus paraphrophilus
• Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans
• Cardiobacterium hominis
• Eikenella corrodens
• Kingella kingae

• Colorectal cancer: Colorectal cancer, also called colon cancer or bowel cancer, includes cancerous growths in the colon, rectum and appendix.

• Retina Roth Spots: Roth spots are retinal hemorrhages with a white center. Associated with leukemia, diabetes, bacterial endocarditis and pernicious anaemia.

• Retinal Hemorrhages: A profussive bleeding of the retina.

• Osler’s Nodes: Osler's nodes are red, raised injuries on the finger pads, indicative of the heart disease, subacute bacterial endocarditis. It can also be seen on the feet. They are named after Sir William Osler.

• Janeway lesion: A small infection or profusively bleeding wound seen in some cases of bacterial endocarditis, usually on the palm of the hand or the sole of the foot.

• Bioprosthetic: an artificial valve obtained from an animal such as a pig.

• Libman-Sacks endocarditis: A form of vegetative endocarditis found in association with lupus infections that affect the entire body or organism. Also called atypical verrucous endocarditis (endocarditis that occurs with unusual wartlike projections), Libman-Sacks syndrome, nonbacterial verrucous endocarditis (nonbacterial endocarditis that occurs with wartlike projections).

• Lupus: Any of several diseases, especially systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus infections that affect the entire body or organism), that typically affect the skin and joints but often also involve other systems of the body.

• Antiphospholipid syndrome: a disorder of the immune system that is characterized by excessive clotting of blood and/or certain complications of pregnancy (premature miscarriages, unexplained fetal death, or premature birth) and antiphospholipid antibodies (cardiolipin or lupus anticoagulant antibodies).

• Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: cardiomyopathy that is characterized by ventricular hypertrophy especially of the left ventricle which affects the interventricular septum more than the free ventricular wall, that may cause mitral insufficiency or obstructed left ventricle outflow, and that is marked by chest pain, syncope, and palpitations —abbreviation HCM.

• Flora: The bacteria and other microorganisms that normally inhabit a bodily organ or part: intestinal flora.

• Porous: Full of or having pores.

• Deformation: A bodily malformation, distortion, or disfigurement.

• Sterile Platelet: A non-reproductive platelet.

• Platelet: A platelet is the smallest type of blood cell. Platelets are the body's first defense against bleeding, helping the blood to clot (coagulate) by collecting at the site of a wound and clumping together to help stop the flow of blood.

• Fibrin: An elastic, insoluble, whitish protein derived from fibrinogen by the action of thrombin and forming an interlacing fibrous network in the transformation of blood.

 

 

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