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encephalitis

(Encyclopedia)encephalitis ĕnsĕfˌəlīˈtəs [key], general term used to describe a diffuse inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, usually of viral origin, often transmitted by mosquitoes, in contrast to a b...

alternative medicine

(Encyclopedia)alternative medicine, the treatment and prevention of disease by techniques that are regarded by modern Western medicine as scientifically unproved or unorthodox. The term alternative medicine can enc...

palpitation

(Encyclopedia)palpitation pălˌpĭtāˈshən [key], abnormal heartbeat that is often associated with a sensation of fluttering or thumping. The normal heartbeat is not noticeable to the individual. Palpitation may...

Sitapur

(Encyclopedia)Sitapur sēˈtäpo͞or [key], town (1991 pop. 121,842), Uttar Pradesh state, N central India. The town is a market for grain, oilseed, and jute. The sugar and plywood industries are important. There i...

chronic fatigue syndrome

(Encyclopedia)chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) or myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), collection of persistent, debilitating symptoms, the most notable of which is severe, lasting fatigue. It is also known as systemic ex...

prostate cancer

(Encyclopedia)prostate cancer, cancer originating in the prostate gland. Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignancies in men in the United States, second only to skin cancer, and as a cause of cancer deat...

syphilis

(Encyclopedia)syphilis sĭfˈəlĭs [key], contagious sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochete Treponema pallidum (described by Fritz Schaudinn and Erich Hoffmann in 1905). Syphilis was not widely reco...

sciatica

(Encyclopedia)sciatica sīătˈĭkə [key], severe pain in the leg along the sciatic nerve and its branches. It may be caused by injury or pressure to the base of the nerve in the lower back, or by metabolic, toxic...

Baixada Fluminense

(Encyclopedia)Baixada Fluminense bīshäˈdə flo͞omēnēNnˈsə [key], coastal lowland region, Rio de Janeiro state, SE Brazil. It extends c.250 mi (400 km) from Sepetiba Bay to the Paraíba River between the Ser...

septicemia

(Encyclopedia)septicemia sĕptĭsēˈmēə [key], invasion of the bloodstream by virulent bacteria that multiply and discharge their toxic products. The disorder, which is serious and sometimes fatal, is commonly k...