This glossary can be useful, when learning new medical terms while learning new subjects or while learning the subject in English, which can be confusing for people who learned it in French first. These terms are used in the many subjects we learn in the health science program such as chemistry and biology.
alloy
noun
A metal made by combining two or more metallic elements, especially to give greater strength or resistance to corrosion.
Example: At room temperature, the microstructure of the Copper-Zinc ALLOY appears as shown in figure 12.
fr: alliage
arrhythmia
noun
An abnormal heart rhythm, where the heart beats too fast (tachycardia), too slow (bradycardia), or with an irregular pattern due to faulty electrical signals.
Example: This visit to the hospital triggered further investigations, which included a 24-hour ECG, and echocardiogram both of which did not show any evidence of an ARRHYTHMIA.
fr: arythmie
benign
adjective
(of a disease) not harmful in effect.
Example: It is known that a number of breast problems can cause microcalcification to occur, most of which are usually BENIGN.
fr: bénigne
biopsy
noun
A medical procedure that removes a small sample of tissue, cells, or fluid from the body to be examined under a microscope by a pathologist.
Example: Cytology Cytological analysis involves either Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) or a core needle BIOPSY.
fr: biopsie
buoyancy
noun
The ability or tendency to float in water or air or some other fluid.
fr: flottabilité
cardiothoracic
noun
The medical and surgical specialty focused on the heart, lungs, esophagus, and other structures within the chest cavity (the thorax).
Example: This is a point-of-care test for coagulation currently in use in CARDIOTHORACIC surgery and intensive care in the hospital in which I work, and which is increasingly being asked for by anaesthetists during other types of surgery, such as aortic aneurysm repair, radical neck dissection with insertion of free flap and other surgery with the potential for large blood losses or haemostatic disturbance.
fr: cardiothoracique
embolism
noun
Obstruction of an artery, typically by a clot of blood or an air bubble.
Example: Pulmonary EMBOLISM - has no risk factors for the development of a PE (e.g. obesity, Oral contraceptive pill, post surgery, smoking etc) and did not report any haemoptysis or dizziness.
fr: embolie
flask
noun
A narrow-necked glass container, typically conical or spherical, used in a laboratory to hold reagents or samples.
Example: Experimental method: To begin the sample of pharmaceutical preparation - sample A (4g) was placed in a conical FLASK (100ml) with ethyl acetate (50ml) and swirled thoroughly; a semi-cloudy solution was formed.
fr: fiole
lesions
adjective
A region in an organ or tissue which has suffered damage through injury or disease, such as a wound, ulcer, abscess, or tumor.
Example: Surgical resection for recurrent LESIONS should be considered.
fr: lésions
neurodivergent
adjective
Describes people whose brains function, learn, and process information differently than what is considered typical. It is a non-medical, umbrella term often used for conditions like autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and Tourette’s syndrome.
organelle
noun
Élément différencié de la cellule vivante.
Example: As the nucleus is also a double-membrane ORGANELLE, the Endokaryotic Hypothesis suggests that it has also been captured by an engulfing bacterium 5.
fr: organite
pathologist
noun
A scientist who studies the causes and effects of diseases, especially one who examines laboratory samples of body tissue for diagnostic or forensic purposes.
Example: The PATHOLOGIST noted that these lesions may have been two separate primaries, although the presence of DCIS in a section between the lesions indicated it was more likely to be one area of DCIS with multi focal invasive carcinomas.
fr: pathologiste
placebo
noun
A harmless pill, medicine, or procedure prescribed more for the psychological benefit to the patient than for any physiological effect.
Example: 1997 Randomised PLACEBO-controlled trial of early aspirin use in 20000 patients with acute ischaemic stroke.
fr: placebo
pneumonia
noun
An infection that inflames the air sacs (alveoli) in one or both lungs, causing them to fill with fluid or pus, which leads to coughing, fever, chills, and breathing difficulties.
Example: A study on AIDS and non-AIDS patients for the infection pneumocytosis carnii PNEUMONIA, revealed that AIDS patients had a lower mortality rate at 10-15% compared to the non-AIDS patients with ~50%.
fr: pneumonie
prognosis
noun
The likely course of a disease or ailment.
Example: PROGNOSIS - A 10 year follow up study found that 52% had fully recovered and only 9% continued to experience full symptoms of BN [5]
. If the illness is identified early enough, the PROGNOSIS is good.
