What does atrophy mean in medical term?

What does atrophy mean in medical term?

Atrophy: A wasting away or diminution. Muscle atrophy is a decrease in muscle mass, often due to extended immobility.

What does atrophy mean?

atrophy, decrease in size of a body part, cell, organ, or other tissue. The term implies that the atrophied part was of a size normal for the individual, considering age and circumstance, prior to the diminution.

Does atrophic mean?

a wasting away of the body or of an organ or part, as from defective nutrition or nerve damage. degeneration, decline, or decrease, as from disuse: He argued that there was a progressive atrophy of freedom and independence of thought. verb (used with or without object), at·ro·phied, at·ro·phy·ing.

What happens during atrophy?

Atrophy is defined as a decrease in the size of a tissue or organ due to cellular shrinkage; the decrease in cell size is caused by the loss of organelles, cytoplasm and proteins.

What are the 6 common causes of atrophy?

Causes of muscle atrophy

• lack of physical activity for an extended period of time.
• aging.
• alcohol-associated myopathy, a pain and weakness in muscles due to excessive drinking over long periods of time.
• burns.
• injuries, such as a torn rotator cuff or broken bones.
• malnutrition.
• spinal cord or peripheral nerve injuries.
• stroke.

What are the symptoms of atrophy?

Muscle atrophy may accompany other symptoms affecting the neuromuscular system including:

• Balance problems, difficulty walking, and falls.
• Difficulty with speaking and swallowing.
• Facial weakness.
• Gradual difficulty walking and speaking, memory loss, tingling or weakness of extremities.
• Impaired balance and coordination.

What are 4 potential causes of atrophy?

Common causes include neuromuscular diseases, such as spinal cord atrophy, multiple sclerosis (disease that affects the brain and spinal cord causing weakness, coordination, balance difficulties, and other problems), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease; a severe neuromuscular disease …

How do you fix atrophy?

Common treatments for muscle atrophy include:

1. exercise.
2. physical therapy.
3. ultrasound therapy.
4. surgery.
5. dietary changes.

What can cause atrophy?

Lack of physical activity due to an injury or illness, poor nutrition, genetics, and certain medical conditions can all contribute to muscle atrophy. Muscle atrophy can occur after long periods of inactivity. If a muscle does not get any use, the body will eventually break it down to conserve energy.

Is atrophy painful?

Depending on the cause, atrophy may occur in one muscle, a group of muscles, or the entire body, and it may be accompanied by numbness, pain or swelling, as well as other types of neuromuscular or skin symptoms.

Can atrophy be reversed?

Muscle atrophy can often be reversed through regular exercise and proper nutrition in addition to getting treatment for the condition that’s causing it.

Can atrophy be cured?

What is the medical dictionary definition of Atrophia?

1. decrease in size of a normally developed organ or tissue; see also wasting. 2. to undergo or cause such a decrease. adj., adj atroph´ic. acute yellow atrophy massive hepatic necrosis. circumscribed cerebral atrophy pick’s disease.

What does joint effusion mean in medical terms?

Joint effusion is an excessive amount of fluid that accumulates within a joint. This only applies to synovial joints, which have fluid already positioned in the joint space to help lubricate and protect the bones in that space.

What does it mean to have brain atrophy?

Atrophy of any tissue means loss of cells. In brain tissue, atrophy describes a loss of neurons and the connections between them. Atrophy can be generalized, which means that all of the brain has shrunk; or it can be focal, affecting only a limited area of the brain and resulting in a decrease of the functions that area of the brain controls.

What is the definition of acute yellow atrophy?

2. to undergo or cause such a decrease. adj., adj atroph´ic. acute yellow atrophy massive hepatic necrosis. circumscribed cerebral atrophy pick’s disease. disuse atrophy atrophy of a tissue or organ as a result of inactivity or diminished function.