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hair bulb
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hair cells
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Cells in the ear that transmit sound messages to the brain and play a vital role in hearing.
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hair shaft
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The portion of hair that extends beyond the surface of the skin. It contains three layers: the
cuticle,
cortex, and medulla (not always present).
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hallucination
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A perception of something that is not really there.
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hammertoe
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A sometimes painful condition in which the toe curls up and under (resembling a hammer).
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happiness
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Feelings of contentment or joy; the overall experience of pleasure and meaning in life.
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happiness set-point
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An individual's baseline level of
happiness, determined largely by genetics, around which moods fluctuate. After reacting to positive or negative life changes, people tend to return to their happiness set-points.
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harm reduction therapy
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A treatment strategy aimed at minimizing the harm associated with an
object of addiction. This strategic approach helps people learn how to limit the degree to which they use their object of addiction, or limit the risks associated with their use, but they do not necessarily stop altogether.
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Hashimoto's thyroiditis
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A disease in which the body's immune system prevents the thyroid
gland from producing enough thyroid
hormone.
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hay fever
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A commonly used term for
allergic rhinitis?seasonal or year-round allergic condition marked by sneezing, runny nose, and congestion. The most common type of allergy, it is caused by an IgE-mediated immune response to inhaled airborne allergens.
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HDL
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Abbreviation for high-density lipoprotein, the so-called good cholesterol. This lipoprotein (a substance made up of fats and protein) is believed to remove cholesterol from the arteries.
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health care proxy
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A legal form allowing a person to appoint someone else to make their medical decisions. Also known as a durable power of attorney for health care.
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hearing aid
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An electronic device worn in or behind the ear by people with hearing problems that makes sounds louder.
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heart attack
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The common term for a myocardial infarction. It refers to the damage that occurs when blood flow to part of the heart is blocked or drastically restricted. The blockage usually stems from the rupture of an atherosclerotic plaque.
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heart block
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The difficulty or inability of the electrical signal that triggers a heart contraction to pass through the atrioventricular node.
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heart failure
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The inability of the heart to pump enough blood to meet the needs of the body's organs.
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heart murmur
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An extra or unusual sound heard during the heartbeat. A murmur may or may not be a sign of a problem in the heart.
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heart rate
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The number of times the heart contracts in a minute, normally 60?100 times.
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heartburn
-
A burning pain in the chest or throat, caused when
stomach acid backs up into the
esophagus.
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Heberden's nodes
-
Bony bumps found on the finger joints in some people with
osteoarthritis.
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hedonic
-
Devoted to pleasure.
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hedonic treadmill
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The human tendency to adapt to new circumstances and come to consider them normal, so the emotional effects (negative or positive) generated by a change fade over time.
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heel spur
-
An abnormal growth of bone or
calcium on the heel bone.
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Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)
-
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helper T cells
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Cells that help fight disease by activating and directing other immune system cells.
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hematemesis
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The vomiting of bright red blood, indicating bleeding in the upper
digestive tract.
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hematoma
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hematuria
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Blood in the urine.
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hemianopia
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Poor vision or blindness in half of the
visual field, affecting one or both eyes
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hemiparesis
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Muscle weakness on one side of the body.
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hemiplegia
-
Paralysis on one side of the body.
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hemochromatosis
-
A
genetic condition in which the body absorbs and stores too much iron.
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hemodialysis
-
The use of a machine to remove wastes and impurities from the blood when the kidneys are not working properly.
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hemoglobin
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The oxygen-carrying substance that gives red blood
cells their color.
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hemoptysis
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Coughing up or spitting up blood from the lungs.
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hemorrhage
-
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hemorrhagic stroke
-
A type of
stroke that occurs when a
blood vessel leaks or bursts inside the brain, cutting off the supply of oxygen and nutrition to that part of the brain.
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HEPA filter
-
A high-efficiency air filter.
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heparin
-
A drug that prevents blood from clotting.
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herd immunity
-
Protection that occurs when so many people in a community are immune to an infectious disease that the disease can't spread to others.
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herniated disk
-
When part of a spinal
disk bulges out of a tear or weak spot in the disk's tough outer shell. Also known as
prolapsed disk.
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herpes zoster
-
A painful blistering skin rash caused by the chicken pox virus; also known as shingles.
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hertz
-
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hiatal hernia
-
When part of the
stomach pushes upward into the chest through an abnormal opening in the
diaphragm.
-
high blood pressure
-
When blood flowing through
arteries pushes on
artery walls with abnormally high force over a sustained period of time. Also called hypertension.
Related health topics:
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm,
Cardiomyopathy ,
End-Stage Renal Disease,
Glomerulonephritis,
Hemorrhagic Stroke ,
Kidney Cancer,
Kidney Transplant ,
Marfan's Syndrome,
Neuroblastoma,
Obesity,
Retinopathy,
Sickle Cell Anemia,
Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus ,
Uterine Cancer
-
high-density lipoprotein (HDL)
-
-
high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU)
-
A treatment that destroys tumors with heat generated by ultrasound energy.
-
hippocampus
-
Part of the brain that plays an important role in processing long-term memories.
-
hirsutism
-
Excessive facial or body hair in women.
-
histamine
-
A substance released by the immune system when it is exposed to an
allergen. Histamines cause many
allergy symptoms.
