Webster's New World Medical Dictionary

17
amputation
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When performing an amputation, surgeons gener-
ally cut above the diseased or injured area so that a
portion of healthy tissue remains to cushion bone.
Sometimes the location of a cut may depend in part
on its suitability to be fitted with an artificial limb, or
prosthesis.
AMS 1
Atypical measles syndrome.
2
Acute
mountain sickness.
amygdala 1
The amygdaloid nucleus in the
brain.
2
The tonsils. These structures were so
named because they appeared to be shaped like an
almond.
amyloidosis
A group of diseases that result from
the abnormal deposition of a protein, called amy-
loid, in various tissues of the body. Amyloid protein
can be deposited in a localized area, and it may not
be harmful or it may affect only a single tissue of the
body. This form of amyloidosis is called localized
amyloidosis. Amyloidosis that affects tissues
throughout the body is referred to as systemic amy-
loidosis. Systemic amyloidosis can cause serious
changes in organs throughout the body. Amyloidosis
can occur as its own entity or secondarily, as a
result of another illness, including multiple
myeloma, chronic infections (such as tuberculosis
or osteomyelitis), or chronic inflammatory diseases
(such as rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing
spondylitis).
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
A progressive
chronic disease of nerves from the spinal cord that
are responsible for supplying electrical stimulation
to the muscles. Abbreviated ALS. ALS is progressive
and usually fatal in less than eight years, from ill-
nesses that strike as the body becomes weaker. ALS
occurs most often in adults over 50. The cause of
ALS is unknown. It is sometimes called Lou Gehrig’s
disease, after a great baseball player who was its
best-known victim.
ANA
Antinuclear antibody , detected when a blood
sample is microscopically evaluated using special
cellular stain methods. ANAs indicate autoimmu-
nity, or, an overactive misdirected immune system
that can be asssociated with inflammation of various
tissues of the body. The ANA test reveals different
patterns, depending on how the cell nucleus is
stained in the laboratory: homogeneous, or diffuse;
speckled; nucleolar; and peripheral, or rim.
Although these patterns are not specific for any one
illness, certain illnesses can more frequently be
associated with some patterns. For example, the
nucleolar pattern is commonly found in the disease
scleroderma. The speckled pattern is seen in many
conditions and in persons who have no autoim-
mune disorder. ANAs are found in approximately 5
percent of the normal population, usually in low
titers (low levels).