Webster's New World Medical Dictionary

cousin marriage
See 
consanguinity.
Cowper’s gland
See 
bulbourethral gland.
cowpox
A mild skin disease of milk cows, princi-
pally confined to the udder and teats, that can be
contracted by people from milking an infected cow.
Affected people develop vesicles (blebs), which
break and form ulcers on the fingers (sometimes
called “milkers’ nodules”). These usually heal with-
out scarring.
cox-1
Cyclooxygenase-1, an enzyme that acts to
speed up the production of certain chemical mes-
sengers, called prostaglandins, in a variety of areas
of the body such as the stomach, kidneys, and sites
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of inflammation. In the stomach, prostaglandins
promote the production of a protective natural
mucus lining. They also interact within certain cells
that are responsible for inflammation and other
functions.
cox-2
Cyclooxygenase-2, an enzyme that acts to
speed up the production of certain chemical mes-
sengers, called prostaglandins that play a key role in
in promoting inflammation. When cox-2 activity is
blocked, inflammation is reduced. Unlike cox-1,
cox-2 is active only at the site of inflammation, not
in the stomach.
cox-2 inhibitor
An antiinflammatory drug that
selectively blocks the cox-2 enzyme. Blocking this
enzyme impedes the production of the chemical
messengers that cause the pain and swelling of
arthritis inflammation. Cox-2 inhibitors do not pose
as great a risk of injuring the stomach or intestines
as drugs that block cox-1. An example of a cox-2
inhibitor is celecoxib (brand name: Celebrex).
Coxsackievirus
A family of enteroviruses first
found in the town Coxsackie, south of Albany, New
York. The Coxsackieviruses are separable into two
groups: A and B. Type A viruses cause herpangina
(sores in the throat) and hand, foot, and mouth dis-
ease. Type B viruses cause epidemic pleurodynia.
Both types A and B viruses can cause meningitis,
myocarditis, and pericarditis, as well as diabetes in
children.