Webster's New World Medical Dictionary

AVM
Arteriovenous malformation. See 
malfor-
mation, arteriovenous.
avulsion
Tearing away. A nerve can be avulsed by
an injury, as can part of a bone.
axilla
Armpit.
axillary
Pertaining to the armpit, the cavity
beneath the junction of the arm and the body.
axillary dissection
Removal of a portion of the
lymph nodes under the arm.
axis
The second cervical vertebra. The first cervi-
cal vertebra (atlas) rotates around the odontoid
process of the axis. See also 
atlas; atlantoaxial
joint.
axon
A long fiber of a nerve cell (neuron) that
acts somewhat like a fiber-optic cable to carry out-
going messages. The neuron sends electrical
impulses from its cell body through the axon to tar-
get cells. Each nerve cell has one axon. An axon can
be over a foot in length. See also 
dendrite; neuron.
Ayurveda
India’s traditional, natural system of
medicine that has been practiced for more than
5,000 years. Ayurveda provides an integrated
approach to preventing and treating illness through
lifestyle interventions and natural therapies.
Ayurvedic theory states that all disease begins with
an imbalance or stress in the individual’s con-
sciousness. Lifestyle intervention is a major
ayurvedic preventive and therapeutic approach.
azotemia
A higher-than-normal blood level of urea
or other nitrogen-containing compounds. The hall-
mark test for azotemia is the serum blood urea nitro-
gen (BUN) level. Azotemia is usually caused by the
inability of the kidneys to excrete these compounds.
AZT
Azidothymidine, now renamed zidovudine,
but still best known by the abbreviation AZT. This
antiviral drug is prescribed, usually in combination
with protease inhibitors and other drugs, to treat
HIV infection in patients with AIDS.