Dictionary

interstitial radiation See radiation therapy, interstitial.

interstitial Pertaining to being between things, especially between things that are normally closely spaced. The word interstitial is much used in medicine and has specific meaning, depending on the context. For instance, interstitial cystitis is a specific type of inflammation of the bladder wall. Interstitial radiation involves placing radioactive material directly into a tumor. Interstitial…

intersex A group of conditions sometimes referred to as disorders of sexual development (DSDs) in which there is a discrepancy between the appearance of the external genitalia and the type of internal (testes and ovaries) genitalia. The condition was formerly termed hermaphroditism or pseudohermaphroditism. One example of intersex is androgen insensitivity syndrome, in which the…

interphase The interval in the cell cycle between two cell divisions, during which the individual chromosomes cannot be distinguished. Interphase was once thought to be a resting phase, but it is actually the time when DNA is replicated in the cell nucleus.

interobserver variation The amount of variation between the results obtained by two or more observers examining the same material.

internist A physician who practices internal medicine and specializes in the diagnosis and medical treatment of adults. See also internal medicine.

international normalized ratio A system established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Committee on Thrombosis and Hemostasis for reporting the results of blood coagulation (clotting) tests. Abbreviated INR. Under the INR system, all results are standardized. For example, a person taking the anticoagulant warfarin (brand name: Coumadin) would regularly have blood tested…

internal radiation therapy See radiation therapy, internal.

internal pacemaker See pacemaker, internal.

internal medicine The medical specialty dedicated to the diagnosis and medical treatment of adults. A physician who specializes in internal medicine is referred to as an internist. Subspecialties of internal medicine include allergy and immunology, cardiology (heart diseases), endocrinology (hormone disorders), hematology (blood disorders), infectious diseases, gastroenterology (diseases of the gut), nephrology (kidney diseases), oncology…

internal jugular vein The deeper of the two jugular veins in the neck that drain blood from the head, brain, face, and neck, and then convey it toward the heart. The internal jugular vein runs down the inside of the neck, outside the internal and common carotid arteries, and unites with the subclavian vein to…

internal genitalia, female See genitalia.