Category: P

An inflamed papule (small superficial bump on the skin) that bleeds easily. Pyogenic granulomas often appear at the site of an injury or irritation but can also occur as a complication of a port-wine stain. They are most common on the face, arms, and hands and are seen most frequently in children and in pregnant…

Also known as benign intracranial hypertension, a syndrome caused by increased pressure within the brain. Symptoms of pseudotumor cerebri can mimic those of a tumor and include headache, vomiting, double vision, and papilledema (swelling of the first part of the optic nerve), but no tumor is found on cerebral imaging. The condition is most common…

The process by which molecules of protein are broken down into amino acids. Protein synthesis is a necessary part of digestion that takes place in the stomach and small intestine. Giant molecules of protein must be digested by enzymes before they can be used to build and repair body tissues. For the most part this…

The instruction and practice of physical exercises designed to aid an athlete’s perception of his or her body’s position in space. Proprioceptive training is especially important to gymnasts who perform multiple turns in the air and must land upright on their feet. Balance and the ability to change directions of movements rapidly and smoothly are…

The brand name of a drug. As long as a pharmaceutical company holds a patent on a drug, it alone will produce and sell that drug, which will have a brand name in addition to its generic (established) name. The generic name is associated with the class of medicine and the chemical composition of the…

A narcotic painkiller. Propoxyphene (Darvon) is used to relieve mild to moderate pain, providing pain relief equivalent to that from aspirin. Propoxyphene works by altering the person’s response to painful stimuli. Although it is considered a mild narcotic, propoxyphene is nevertheless a controlled substance and can impair a person’s ability to drive.  

Treatment for chronic joint pain involving nonsurgical reconstruction of the ligament. Prolotherapy refers to the proliferation, or growth, of new ligament tissue holding bones to one another in the joints. Prolotherapy seeks to restore blood supply and nutrients to weakened ligaments and tendons (tissue holding bones to muscles), thereby stimulating the tissue to repair itself.…

A noncancerous tumor of the pituitary gland that causes it to produce too much prolactin, the hormone that stimulates breast milk production. The chief symptom of prolactinoma is fluid leaking from the nipple of a woman who is neither pregnant nor breast-feeding. A doctor will examine the breast and test the fluid in a laboratory…

A drug used to treat cardiac arrhythmias. Procainamide hydrochloride (Procanbid, Pronestyl) is used to treat life-threatening disorders affecting the rhythm of the heart, including ventricular tachycardia (rapid heartbeat). Procainamide hydrochloride works by slowing nerve impulses in the heart and reducing the excitability of cardiac tissue. A derivative of procaine, used to treat certain cardiac arrythmias…

On the day of surgery, the patient is admitted into the hospital or the same-day surgery center before being directed to the preoperative holding area. Before the person is sent to the operating room, the nurse checks to make sure that the patient has signed a surgical consent form and has had nothing to eat…