Complication, in medicine, is a unfavorable evolution of a disease, a health condition or a medical treatment. The disease can become worst in its severity or show a higher number of signs, symptoms or new pathological changes, become widespread throughout the body or affect other organ systems. A medical treatment, such as drugs or surgery may produce adverse effects and/or produce new health problem(s) by itself. A new disease may also appear as a complication to a previous existing disease. NLM (National Library of Medicine, contains resources for patients and healthcare professionals) Virtual Hospital (digital health sciences library by the University of Iowa) Online Medical Dictionary Collection of links to free medical resources Wikicities has a wiki about medicine: Medicine Categories: Medicine | Health ... A disease is any abnormal condition of the body or mind that causes discomfort, dysfunction, or distress to the person affected or those in contact with the person. ... Treatment may refer to: Health Therapy - the act of remediation of a health problem. ... The term symptom (from the Greek syn = con/plus and pipto = fall, together meaning co-exist) has two similar meanings in the context of physical and mental health: A symptom can be a physical condition which shows that one has a particular illness or disorder (see e. ... Pathology (in ancient Greek pathos = feeling, pain, suffering and logos = discourse or treatise, i. ... A drug is any substance that can be used to modify a chemical process or processes in the body, for example to treat an illness, relieve a symptom, enhance a performance or ability, or to alter states of mind. ... A typical modern surgery operation For other meanings of the word, see Surgery (disambiguation) Surgery (from the Greek cheirourgia - lit. ... Adverse effect, in medicine, is an abnormal, harmful, undesired and/or unintended side-effect, although not necessarily unexpected, which is obtained as the result of a therapy or other medical intervention, such as drug/chemotherapy, physical therapy, surgery, medical procedure, use of a medical device, etc. ...

Medical knowledge about a disease, procedure or treatment usually entails a list of the most common complications, so that they can be foreseen, prevented or recognized more easily and speedily.

Depending on the degree of vulnerability, susceptibility, age, health status, immune system condition, etc. complications may arise more easily. Complications affect adversely the prognosis of a disease. Non-invasive and minimally invasive medical procedures usually favor less complications in comparison to invasive ones. Description An air embolism, or more generally gas embolism, is a medical condition caused by gas bubbles in the bloodstream. ... The immune system is the organ system that protects an organism from outside biological influences. ... Prognosis (older Greek πρόγνωσις, modern Greek πρόγνωση - literally fore-knowing, foreseeing) is a medical term denoting the doctors prediction of how a patients disease will progress, and whether there is chance of recovery. ... The term non-invasive in Medicine has two meanings: A medical procedure which does not penetrates or breaks the skin or a body cavity, i. ... A minimally invasive medical procedure is defined as one that is carried out by entering the body through the skin or through a body cavity or anatomical opening, but with the smallest damage possible to these structures. ... The term invasive in Medicine has two meanings: A medical procedure which penetrates or breaks the skin or a body cavity, i. ...

Examples of complications

• Generalized septicemia (infection of the blood) may occurr as a complication of an infected wound or abscess
• Allergic shock can be a reaction to several kinds of anesthetics, as a complication in a surgery
• Fractured ribs and sternum may be a complication of cardiopulmonary resuscitation attempts in people suffering severe osteoporosis
• Puerperal fever may be a common complication of childbirth and used to kill a large proportion of mothers before the advent of antisepsis and antibiotics
• Diabetes mellitus may present a series of complications in an advanced or more severe stage, such as gangrene, diabetic foot, blindness, infections, etc.
• Thrombosis in the heart or brain, causing stroke or acute myocardial infarction can be complications of blood coagulation disorders, phlebitis (inflamation of the veins), endocarditis and artificial heart valves
• Eczema vaccinatum is a rare and severe complication of smallpox vaccination in people with eczema
• Hepatotoxic dementia is a possible complication of hepatitis and liver cirrhosis
• Mental retardation is a common complication of untreated hydrocephalus

Sepsis (in Greek Σήψις) is a serious medical condition caused by a severe systemic infection leading to a systemic inflammatory response. ... A wound is a physical trauma where the skin is torn, cut or punctured. ... An abscess is a collection of pus collected in a cavity formed by the tissue on the basis of an infectious process (usually caused by bacteria or parasites) or other foreign materials (e. ... In medicine, shock is a life-threatening medical emergency characterized by inability of the body to supply enough oxygen to meet tissue requirements. ... Cetacaine, a topical anesthetic Anesthesia (AE), also anaesthesia (BE), is the process of blocking the perception of pain and other sensations. ... This article is about the bones called ribs. ... Sternum or breastbone is a long, flat bone located in the center of the thorax (chest). ... CPR on adult Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), is emergency first aid for an unconscious person on whom breathing and pulse cannot be detected. ... Osteoporosis is a disease of bone in which the amount of bone is decreased and the strength of trabecular bone is reduced, cortical bone becomes thin and bones are susceptible to fracture. ... Puerperal fever is caused by infection of the genital tract shortly after giving birth, although any fever within two weeks of childbirth is dangerous since it can cause infertility or septicaemia. ... Newborn with suctioning and umbilical cord Childbirth (also called labour, birth, or parturition) is the culmination of pregnancy, the emergence of a child from its mothers uterus. ... An antiseptic is a substance that kills or prevents the growth of bacteria on the external surfaces of the body. ... An antibiotic is a drug that kills or slows the growth of bacteria. ... Diabetes mellitus is a medical disorder characterized by varying or persistent hyperglycemia (elevated blood sugar levels), especially after eating. ... Gangrene is necrosis and subsequent decay of body tissues caused by infection, thrombosis or lack of blood flow. ... Blindness can be defined physiologically as the condition of lacking sight. ... An infection is the detrimental colonization of a host organism by a foreign species. ... Thrombosis is the formation of a clot or thrombus inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. ... The heart and lungs (from an older edition of Grays Anatomy) The heart (Latin cor) is a hollow, muscular organ that pumps blood through the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions. ... In the anatomy of animals, the brain, or encephalon, is the supervisory center of the nervous system. ... A stroke or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) occurs when the blood supply to a part of the brain is suddenly interrupted by occlusion (an ischemic stroke- approximately 90%of strokes) or by hemorrhage (a hemorrhagic stroke - approximately 10% of strokes). ... Coagulation is the thickening or congealing of any liquid into solid clots. ... Phlebitis is an inflammation of a vein (usually in the legs). ... In geology, a vein is a regularly shaped and lengthy occurrence of an ore; a lode. ... Endocarditis is an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, the endocardium. ... Eczema vaccinatum skin rash. ... Smallpox (also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera) is a highly contagious disease unique to humans. ... Vaccination is a term coined by Edward Jenner for the process of administering a weakened form of a disease to patients as a means of giving them immunity to a more serious form of the disease. ... // Typical, mild dermatitis Eczema is a form of dermititis, a skin irritation characterized by red, flaky skin, sometimes with cracks or tiny blisters. ... Hepatitis is a gastroenterological disease, featuring inflammation of the liver. ... Cirrhosis is a chronic disease of the liver in which liver tissue is replaced by connective tissue, resulting in the loss of liver function. ... ...

Related topic

• Adverse effect (medicine)
• Prognosis