device, medical Broadly defined, any physical item used in medical treatment, from a heart pacemaker to a wheelchair. In insurance parlance, medical device is usually synonymous with assistive device, although it may include items more frequently thought of as medical supplies, such as dressings needed for wound care at home or syringes for self-administration of…
dextro- Prefix from the Latin word dexter, meaning “on the right side.” For example, a molecule that shows dextrorotation is turning or twisting to the right. The opposite of levo-.
dextrocardia Reversal of the anatomic location of the heart, placing it in the right side of the chest rather than in its normal location on the left. This is a true anatomic reversal, in which the apex (tip) of the heart points to the right instead of the left. Dextrocardia occurs in Kartagener syndrome, an…
dextroposition Moving to the right.
dextroposition of the heart A condition in which the heart is displaced to the right side of the chest, but without any anatomic alteration in the heart itself. Dextroposition occurs when the contents of the left side of the chest shove the heart to the right, or when the contents of the right side of…
dextrose Glucose, a simple sugar.
DHEA See dehydroepiandrosterone.
DHF Dengue hemorrhagic fever.
Di Ferrante syndrome A rare form of mucopolysaccharidosis. Di Ferrante syndrome is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder. Also known as mucopolysaccharidosis Type IX. See also mucopolysaccharidosis.
dia- Prefix meaning through, throughout, or completely, as in diachronic (over a period of time), diagnosis (to completely define the nature of a disease), and dialysis (cleansing the blood by passing it through a special machine).
diabetes See diabetes mellitus.
diabetes, adult-onset Type 2 diabetes. See also diabetes, type 2.