Phthisis

Phthisis
A good trivia or crossword item. A Greek word meaning "a dwindling or wasting away." Pronounced "thi-sis." The tongue-twisting name "nephronophthisis" is derived from "nephron" + "phthisis." The nephron is the fundamental functional unit in the kidney and includes the renal tubule and glomerulus. In nephronophthisis the kidney is progressively destroyed and the child wastes away. Phthisis is an archaic name for tuberculosis. A person afflicted with tuberculosis in the old days was destined to dwindle and waste away like Mimi, the heroine of Puccini's 1896 opera "La Bohčme."

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phthi·sis 't(h)ī-səs, 't(h)is-əs n, pl phthi·ses 't(h)ī-.sēz, 't(h)is-.ēz a progressively wasting or consumptive condition esp pulmonary tuberculosis

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n.
1. any disease resulting in wasting of tissues. Phthisis bulbi is a shrunken eyeball that has lost its function due to disease or damage.
2. a former name for pulmonary tuberculosis.

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phthi·sis (thiґsis) (tiґsis) [Gr. phthisis, from phthiein to decay] a wasting away of the body or a part of the body.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • Phthisis — Phthi sis, n. [L., fr. Gr. ?, fr. ? to pass or waste away: cf. F. phthisie.] (Med.) A wasting or consumption of the tissues. The term was formerly applied to many wasting diseases, but is now usually restricted to pulmonary phthisis, or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • phthisis — 1520s, from L.L. phthisis, from Gk. phthisis wasting, consumption, from phthiein to decay, waste away (see PHTHISIC (Cf. phthisic)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • Phthisis — (Phthoë, gr.), 1) Auszehrung, s.d. 1) d), die in einem allgemeinen Verderben eines Hauptorgans, bes. in Vereiterung desselben, u. einem dadurch unterhaltenen chronischen Fieber ihren nächsten Grund hat. Man unterscheidet P. pituitōsa… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Phthīsis — (griech., Schwindsucht, lat. Tabes, Consumptio), jede Art von Auszehrung und jede Art von Gewebsschwund, ohne Rücksicht, durch welche Prozesse er zustande kommt. P. bulbi, Augenschwund, s. Augenvereiterung; P. pulmonum, Lungenschwindsucht; P.… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Phthisis — (grch.), Abzehrung, Schwindsucht, krankhafter Zustand, bei dem infolge zehrender Krankheit rasche Abmagerung erfolgt; in der Regel gleichbedeutend mit Lungenschwindsucht (s.d.) gebraucht …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Phthisis — Phthisis, griech., Schwindsucht …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • phthisis — [tī′sis, thī′sis, fthī′sis] n. [L < Gr, a decay < phthiein, to waste away < IE base * gwhthei , to disappear, be destroyed > Sans kṣáyati, (he) destroys] any wasting disease, as tuberculosis of the lungs phthisic [tiz′ik] adj., n.… …   English World dictionary

  • Phthisis — Klassifikation nach ICD 10 A15 Tuberkulose der Atmungsorgane, bakteriologisch oder histologisch gesichert A16 Tuberkulose der Atmungsorgane, weder bakteriologisch noch histologisch gesichert …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • phthisis — /thuy sis, tuy /, n. Pathol. 1. a wasting away. 2. pulmonary tuberculosis; consumption. [1515 25; < Gk phthísis lung disease, lit., a wasting away, equiv. to phthí(ein) to decay + sis SIS] * * * …   Universalium

  • phthisis — noun /ˈfθʌɪsɪs,ˈθʌɪsɪs,ˈtʌɪsɪs/ an atrophy of the body or part of the body, especially pulmonary tuberculosis , 1985: Tired from his journey and his chronic lung weakness, which he had saved from turning to phthisis by winter sojourns in Egypt,… …   Wiktionary

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