Dictionary

This is a small dictionary with hepatitis terms, or terms related to hepatitis.

• Antibody

  • a protein secreted by the immune system in response to infection.

• Asymptomatic

  • having no symptoms.

• Cirrhosis

  • is a condition in which scar tissue develops on the liver - to the extent where such scarring becomes extensive and is usually permanent. 

    It interferes with the normal functioning of the liver.

• Gastroenterologist

  • a medical specialist who specialises in diseases of the liver, stomach, oesophagus and intestines.

• Haemoglobin

  • a complex protein-iron compound in the blood that carries oxygen to the cells from the lungs and carbon dioxide away from the cells to the lungs

• HBV

  • (abbr.)
    Hepatitis B Virus.

• Hepatic failure

  • The liver ceases to function

• Hepatitis

  • Inflammation of the liver, caused by infectious or toxic agents and characterized by jaundice, fever, liver enlargement, and abdominal pain.

• Hepatocellular carcinoma

  • Cancer of the liver.  A malignant tumour arising in the liver, in most cases occurring as a complication following cirrhosis.

• Histopathology

  • The study of the microscopic anatomical changes in diseased tissue.

• Incidence

  • the number of new infections occurring in a given period of time within a specific community.

• Jaundice

  • yellow skin colour that may result from severe hepatitis.  Jaundice is rare in hepatitis C infection.

• Prevalence

  • the number of cases of a type of hepatitis in the community at any one time, usually expressed as a percentage of the population.

• RNA

  • Ribonucleic Acid, a genetic material similar to DNA.  It often acts as a message that is delivered to cells prompting them to change and prepare for reproduction.

• RNA virus

  • Any of a group of viruses whose nucleic acid core is composed of RNA, including the picornaviruses, retroviruses, and paramyxoviruses.

• viral hepatitis

  • A type of hepatitis caused by two distinct viruses, A and B; type A is also known as infectious hepatitis, type B as serum hepatitis.