A Glossary of Medical Terms
- acalculia
- an inability to do mathematical calculations; not caused by anxiety or an impairment in concentration. May occur with a neurological deficit or as a specific learning disorder
- acellular
- without whole cells. An acellular vaccine contains only parts of cells which can produce immunity in the person receiving the vaccine.
- active immunity
- active immunity is generated by the body when the immune system is triggered to produce antibodies, either by immunisation or by disease.
- akinesia
- a generalised slowing of willful movement
- akathisia
- a subjective feeling of motor restlessness or increase in restless activity manifested by a compelling need to be in constant motion. May be seen as a side-effect of some medications. Patients experience muscle tension, difficulty finding a comfortable body position, and inability to stop moving.
- allergen
- a substance which produces an allergic reaction when introduced into the body
- allergic reaction
- the body's response to an allergen
- alogia
- inability to speak. May be associated with mental deficiency.
- anomia
- inability to recall the names of objects.
- antibodies
- proteins produced by the body to neutralise or destroy toxins or disease carrying organisms.
- aphasia
- a disturbance in the comprehension or expression of language. Caused by a lesion in the brain.
- apraxia
- inability to perform a voluntary purposeful motor activity, which cannot be explained by paralysis or other motor or sensory impairment.
- articulation disorder
- difficulty producing and using age-appropriate speech sounds
- Asperger's syndrome
- one of the autism spectrum disorders. Characterised by a severe and sustained impairment in social interaction and the development of restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests, and activities. In contrast to autism there are no significant delays or deviance in language acquisition.
- assessment
- the process by which doctors and other trained professionals work with parents to determine
the level of a child's development, stengths, and weaknesses.
An assessment usually consists of observation of the child and the administration of one or more
standardised tests, and looks at all areas of development:
motor; language; cognitive or intellectual; social/emotional; and self-help skills.
- assistive technology
- equipment that enhances the ability of children and teachers to be more efficient and successful.
Typical examples would be computer grammar checkers, an overhead projector used by a teacher, or the audiovisual information delivered through a CD-ROM.
- ataxia
- lack of muscular coordination.
- attention
- 1. The ability to focus selectively on a selected stimulus, sustaining that focus and shifting it at will. 2. Concentration. The aspect of consciousness that relates to the amount of effort exerted in focussing on certain aspects of an experience, activity, or task.
- attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- a severe difficulty in focusing and maintaining attention, which often leads to learning and behavior problems at home, school, and work.
- attenuated
- weakened. Pathogens (organisms such as viruses that produce disease) are attenuated to make them safe for use in a vaccine
- Audiologist
- a professional trained to assess a child's hearing and identify hearing impairments.
- autism
- a developmental disorder characterised by abnormal or impaired social interaction and communication and a markedly restricted repertoire of activity and interests.
- autism spectrum disorders (also called pervasive developmental disorders)
- a group of developmental disorders having similar characteristics: abnormal or impaired social interaction; and impaired communication; and a markedly restricted repertoire of activity and interests.
Includes Asperger's Disorder, Autistic Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, Rett's Syndrome.
- auto immune
- bacterium/bacteria
- single celled micro-organisms. Some bacteria are neccessary for our bodies to work properly. Other bacteria cause disease.
- blepharospasm
- A rapid and violent, repetitive, spasmodic, involuntary, jerking movement of the eyelids. May occur as a side effect of some medications, as part of a tic disorder, or in Tourette's Disorder.
- booster
- extra doses of vaccine given to boost the immune response to the disease the vaccine protects against.
- central nervous system
- the brain, the cranial nerves, and the spinal cord
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
- a medical doctor who, in addition to training in adult psychiatry, has been trained in working with children and adolescents.
- Child and Adolescent Psychologist
- a psychologist who has specialized training in working with children and adolescents to assess
a child's social, emotional and intellectual development.
Usually administers standardized tests by presenting various tasks, and may also observe the child during play.
- clinical
- related to the direct observation and treatment of an individual child or family.
For example, a "clinical interview" is a face-to-face conversation.
A "clinical opinion" is the judgment of a qualified professional, based on direct contact with the child and family
- clinical trials
- part of the process of testing new drugs and vaccines for efficacy and safety, by giving the product under controlled conditions.
- cognition
- the mental process of knowing and becoming aware. Closely associated with judgement.
- combination vaccine
- a single preparation which contains more than one vaccine. For example, MMR contains vaccines against measles, mumps, and rubella (German measles); DTP contains vaccines against diptheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough).
- compulsion
- 1. A pathological need to act on an impulse that, if resisted, causes anxiety.
2. Repetitive behaviour in response to an obsession or performed according to certain rules, with no true end in itself other than to prevent something from occurring in the future. See also obsession.
- concrete thinking
- thinking characterised by actual things, events, and immediate experience, rather than by abstractions. Seen in young children, and in those who have never developed the ability to generalise.
- congenital
- any condition that is present at birth. It may, but does not have to be, inherited.
- conjugate vaccine
- a vaccine in which a part of the germ is combined with a protein which makes it work better and gives better protection over a long period of time. Examples of conjugate vaccines include tetanus and diptheria.
- depression
- a mental state characterised by feelings of sadness, loneliness, despair, poor self-esteem, and self-reproach. In children, depression may present as irritability, changing mood, and social withdrawal.
- development
- the process by which a child acquires social , emotional, intellectual, motor, speech, and language skills.
- developmental aphasia
- a severe language disorder that is presumed to be due to brain injury rather than because of a delay in the normal
acquisition of language.
- developmental delay
- a delay in achieving skills and abilities usually mastered by children of the same age.
Delays may occur in any of the following areas: physical, social, emotional, intellectual, speech and language, and/or adaptive development, sometimes called self-help skills, which include dressing, toileting, feeding, etc.
Caution: the term developmental delay may be used loosely and occasionally is used incorrectly, giving a false impression that the child will "catch up."
- developmental domains
- a term used by professionals to describe different areas of a child's development, such as
- "gross motor development" (large muscle movement and control)
- "fine motor development" (hand and finger skills, and hand-eye coordination)<7li>
- speech and language/communication
- the child's relationship to toys and other objects, to people and to the larger world around them
- the child's emotions and feeling states, coping behavior and self-help skills
- developmental history
- term used by professionals for the story of a child's development, beginning before birth
- developmental milestone
- term used to describe a memorable accomplishment on the part of a baby or young child, such as
rolling over, sitting up without support, crawling, pointing to get an adult's attention, and walking
- developmental paediatrician
- a paediatrician with specialized training and experience in children's social, emotional, and intellectual development as well as health and physical growth
- developmental stages
- the expected, sequential order of acquiring skills that children typically go through.
For example, most children crawl before they walk, and use their fingers to feed themselves before they use utensils.
- diagnosis
- term used to describe the critical analysis of a child's development in all the developmental domains, after reviewing all the assessment results, and the conclusions reached by such analysis. From this diagnosis, professionals offer parents a precise and detailed description of the characteristics of a child's development, including strengths and weaknesses
- disinhibition
- the removal of an inhibitory effect. A greater freedom to act in accordance with inner drives or feelings and with less regard for restraints dictated by cultural norms.
- dysarthria
- difficulty in articulation, the motor activity of shaping phonated sounds into speech, not in finding words or grammar.
- dyscalculia
- a severe difficulty in understanding and using symbols or
functions needed for success in mathematics.
- dysgraphia
- a severe difficulty in producing handwriting that is legible and
written at an age-appropriate speed.
- dyslexia
- a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin.
It is characterised by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by
poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit
in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other
cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction.
Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and
reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and backgound knowledge.
- dysnomia
- a marked difficulty in remembering names or recalling words needed
for oral or written language.
- dyspraxia
- developmental dyspraxia is an impairment of the ability to plan and carry out movements. It is characterised by inaccurate judgements of sequence, timing, and force resulting in difficulty with motor tasks such as drawing, writing, and buttoning. The term specific developmental disorder of motor function is also used.
- dystonia
- a motor disturbance characterised by slow, sustained contractions of muscles. One movement often predominates, leading to relatively sustained postural deviations. Common varieties include spasms of the tongue, neck, or eye muscles. Acute dystonic reactions such as facial grimacing may be seen as a side-effect of some drugs.
- Early Childhood Special Educator. An American term.
- A professional trained in young children's typical and atypical development. An early childhood special educator assist in developing plans and implementing intervention services based on the outcomes of the evaluation/assessment. In a developmental assessment of an infant or young child, the early childhood educator might administer developmental tests looking at the child's developmental domains.
- Early Intervention. An American term now used in Ireland.
- 1. The provision of services, or therapies, designed to enhance the development of infants and toddlers who are at risk of developmental delay, or who have been found to be delayed.
Services may include speech and language therapy, physical and/or occupational therapy. 2. The term Early Intervention is sometimes used to refer to any systematic effort to improve developmental outcomes for young children.
- Early Interventionist. An American term.
- a general term used to descibe any person who works with infants and young children who have developmental delays or disabilities, or who are at risk of developmental problems.
Early Interventionists may be trained in nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech and language, or teaching.
- echolalia
- the repetition of words or phrases of one person by another. For example, repeating a question rather than answering it.
- efficacy
- the measure of a vaccines (or treatment's) effectiveness. Measured by the proportion of those immunised who don't get a disease when exposed to it, or by the number of antibodies produced by the immune system.
- Eligibility. An American term with specific implications under American law.
- This term indicates that a child is legally eligible for publicly funded services.
The specific differ from one state to another.
Children who have a diagnosed physical or mental condition or are developmental delayed are "eligible" for services.
Some states choose to serve children who are "at risk" of developmental delay by making them eligible for publicly funded early intervention services.
Risk factors include:
- established risk: a diagnosed physical or mental condition that has a high probability of resulting in developmental delay
- biological/medical risk: significant biological or medical conditions or events that give a child a greater chance of developing a delay or a disability than children in the general population
- environmental risk: circumstances and family situations that may place children at a greater risk of delay than the general population. Examples include: parental substance abuse, family social disorganization, poverty, parental developmental disability, parent's age, parental educational attainment, and child abuse or neglect
- encephalitis
- an inflammation of the brain which can cause lasting brain damage.
- encephalopathy
- a disease of the brain.
- encopresis
- the involuntary passage of faeces.
- endemic
- the continual presence of an infectious agent or disease within a specific geographic area.
- enuresis
- the involuntary passage of urine. Usually during sleep; nocturnal enuresis.
- epidemic
- an outbreak of a disease that spreads within a population.
- etiology
- The cause or origin of a disabling condition
- evaluation
- Term often used interchangeably with assessment.
However, in the context of services supported by the (American) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA),
evaluation refers to a procedure used to determine a child's eligibility for early intervention services.
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- herd immunity
- the phenomenon by which members of a community who are not immune to a disease are still protected from it provided sufficient numbers of people in that population are immune.
When enough people are immune to a disease, it has little opportunity to find a nonimmune person and spread.
Eventually that disease may be wiped out (e.g. smallpox).
Herd immunity applies only to diseases that are caught from other people.
- hyper-
- prefix meaning more than usual
- hyperactivity
- increased muscular activity. Commonly used to describe a condition (ADHD) manifested by constant restlessness, overactivity, distractibility, and difficulty learning at school. Also called hyperkinesis
- hyperkinesis
- see hyperactivity.
- hyperphagia
- increase in appetite and intake of food
- hypo-
- prefix meaning less than usual
- hypoactivity
- decreased motor and cognitive activity, as in psychomotor retardation; visible slowing of thought, speech, and movements. Also called hypokinesis.
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- immediate memory
- that part of the memory which governs the ability to reproduce, recognise, or recall perceived material within seconds of presentation. Compare long-term memory; short-term memory.
- immunity
- the ability to resist infection due to immunisation or previous infection.
- immune system
- the body's system for fighting infectious disease.
- immunoglobulin
- a type of antibody that can provide short-term immunity against certain diseases.
- impulse control
- the ability to resist an impulse, drive, or temptation to perform some action.
- incidence
- the frequency or range of occurrence of a problem at a particular point in time.
- Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP).
- This is an American term for a legal document which describes a family's strengths and needs
related to enhancing the development of the family's child, including specific statements about
outcomes, criteria, and timelines regarding progress, specific services, provisions for service
coordination, and dates for initiation, duration and reevaluation process.
- Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
- The (American) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act provides grants to states and other jurisdictions to
support the planning of service systems and the delivery of services, including evaluation and
assessment, for young children who have or are at risk of developmental delays/disabilities.
Funds are provided through the Infants and Toddlers Program (known as part C of IDEA) for services to
children from birth to 36 months of age, and through the Preschool Program (known as Part B-Section 619 of IDEA) for services to children 36 to 60 months of age.
- Informed Clinical Opinion
- a professional's use of qualitative and quantitative information to assess a child's
development, especially if there are not standardized measures,
or if the standardized procedures are not appropriate for a given age or development area.
Informed clinical opinion makes use of a practitioner's training, previous experience with evaluation and assessment,
previous experience with children, sensitivity to cultural needs, and the ability to gather and
include family perceptions as important elements in order to make a judgment.
- Interview
- In-depth conversation between a professional and a parent or family.
In a developmental assessment, a clinical interview may be a time in which parents or
other family members have an opportunity to talk about their child, what it is like to care for
him or her, and what their hopes and worries are, with the professional asking questions
as needed in order to understand more clearly.
A structured interview includes a series of specific questions -- for example,
about developmental history.
- intelligence
- the capacity for learning and the ability to recall, integrate constructively, and apply what one has learned; the capacity to understand and think rationally.
- irritability
- abnormal or excessive excitability, with easily triggered anger, annoyance, or impatience.
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- (specific) learning disorder
- a condition that exists when a meaningful difference exists between the current level of academic functioning of a child and the level that would be expected from a child of that particular age and specific level of intelligence.
- live attenuated vaccine
- a vaccine made from live pathogen, which has been altered to make it less harmful. The live vaccines given to children include oral polio, MMR, and BCG. Others include yellow fever and one form of typhoid vaccine.
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- memory
- a process whereby what is experienced or learned is established as a record in the central nervous system (registration), where it persists with a variable degree of permanence (retention) and can be recollected or retrieved from storage at will (recall). See also immediate memory; short-term memory; and long-term memory.
- mental disorder
- a psychiatric illness or disorder whose manifestations are primarily characterised by behavioural or psychological impairment of function, measured bin terms of deviation from some normative concept.
- mental retardation
- below average general intellectual functioning that originates during the developmental period, and is associated with impaired maturation, learning, and social skills.
- micro-organisms
- living organisms which are so small you need a microscope to see them.
- motor planning
- the process of planning and carrying out meaningful motor movements.
- Minimal Brain Dysfunction (MBD)
- a medical and psychological term originally
used to refer to the learning difficulties that seemed to result from identified
or presumed damage to the brain. Reflects a medical, rather than educational or
vocational orientation.
- multidisciplinary team
- A group of professionals with different kinds of training and experience working together, usually
on an ongoing basis. A multidisciplinary team might include a pediatrician, an occupational therapist, a speech language therapist, and a physical therapist.
- myelin
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- neologism
- a new word or phrase whose derivation cannot be understood; seen in autistic disorder.
- Norms
- A pattern or average regarded as typical of a specific group.
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- obsession
- a persistent and recurrent idea, thought, or impulse that cannot be eliminated from consciousness by logic and reasoning; obsessions are involuntary. See also compulsion.
- occupational therapist (OT)
- A professional who has specialized training in helping an individual develop mental or physical
skills that aid in daily living activities, with careful attention to enhancing fine motor skills (hand and finger skills,
eye-hand coordination and sensory integration). In a developmental assessment,
the occupational therapist would assess the child's fine motor skills, coordination, and
self-help skills (eating with utensils, dressing, etc.). He/She would also look at how the child
responds to and uses what he sees, hears, feels, tastes and smells.
- overactivity
- an abnormality of motor behaviour that can manifest itself as psychomotor agitation, hyperactivity (hyperkinesis), tics, sleepwalking, or compulsions.
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- paediatrician
- A medical doctor who has specialized training in caring for the physical health and development of children.
- pandemic
- an epidemic that spreads over a large area, usually affecting several countries.
- pathogen
- an organism that causes disease. For example, a virus or bacterium.
- perception
- the conscious awareness of elements in the environment by the mental processing of sensory stimuli; sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to the mental process by which all kinds of data, intellectual, emotional, and sensory, are meaningfully organised.
- perceptual handicap
- difficulty in accurately processing, organizing, and
discriminating among visual, auditory, or tactile information. A person with a
perceptual handicap may say that "cap/cup" sound the same or that "b" and "d"
look the same. However, glasses or hearing aids do not necessarily indicate a
perceptual handicap.
- pervasive developmental disorder
- a group of disorders characterised by severe and pervasive impairments is several areas of development: reciprocal social interaction skills; communication skills; or the presence of stereotyped behaviour, interests, and activities. Also called Autism Spectrum Disorders.
- perseveration
- 1. Pathological repetition of the same response to different stimuli, as in the repetition of the same response to different questions. 2. Persistent repetition of specific words or concepts in the process of speaking. Seen in autistic disorder.
- phonology
- the study of the production of sounds.
- physical therapist (PT)
- A professional trained in assessing and providing therapy to treat developmental delays,
disease and injury using methods such as exercise, heat, light and massage.
In a developmental assessment, the physical therapist would assess the ability and quality of the
child's use of her legs, arms, and complete body by encouraging the performance of specific
motor tasks as well as observing the child in play.
- pica
- craving and eating of non-food substances, such as paint and clay.
- posturing
- strange, fixed, and bizarre bodily positions held for and extended time.
- praxis
- the doing or performance of an action.
- preservatives
- substances that prevent a vaccine from becoming contaminated.
- prevalence
- The number or proportion of individuals in a community or population with a given condition
or problem.
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- reliability
- The extent to which a test actually measures whatever it is designed to measure.
- ritual
- a formalised activity practiced by a person to reduce anxiety. Seen in obsessive-compulsive disorder, and autistic disorder.
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- screening
- A brief assessment procedure designed to identify children who should receive more intensive assessment.
Screening is designed to identify children who are at risk for health problems, developmental problems, and/or disabling conditions, who may
need to receive helpful intervention services as early as possible.
- sensory integration (SI)
- The process by which a child obtains information via the senses (touch, taste, smell, hearing, vision) and then processes it or integrates it.
This process then affects how a child perceives his body or the world around him, or how a child adapts himself to his world.
According to the theory of sensory integration, the many parts of the nervous system work together so that a child can interact with the environment effectively and experience appropriate satisfaction.
Having poor sensory integration may interfere with many activities necessary for daily functioning, such as brushing teeth, playing on play equipment, or even hugging.
- Specific Learning Disability (SLD)
- the official term used in American legislation to refer to difficulty in certain areas of learning, rather than in all areas of learning. Synonymous with learning disability.
- Speech/Language Pathologist
- a professional trained in the assessment and treatment od problems of communication including: articulation (pronunciation of sounds), receptive language (understanding and processing what is communicated by others), expressive language (the ability to communicate to others), fluency (including stuttering), and voice problems (including pitch and intonation.)
A speech and language pathologist is also trained to work with oral/motor problems, such as swallowing, and other feeding difficulties.
- stammering
- synonymous with stuttering
- stimulus
- an agent, act, or influence which produces a reaction in a part of the body.
- stuttering
- frequent repetition or prolongation of a sound or syllable, leading to markedly impaired speech fluency.
- syndrome
- a set of symptoms, or signs that occur together, and to which a particular name is given.
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- tactile defensiveness
- definition
- Tests
- Several different kinds of tests ar used in the assessment of children with developmental difficulties.
- Achievement tests measure the extent to which a child has acquired certain information or mastered certain skills.
- Criterion-referenced tests measure a specific level of performance or a specific degree of mastery.
- Psychometric tests measure a child's psychological and other developmental traits or abilities.
- Readiness tests measure the extent to which a child has acquired certain skills for successfully undertaking some new learning activity.
- Screening tests identify children who are at risk of health problems, developmental problems, and/or disabling conditions.
- Standardized tests obtain a systematic sample of a child's performance under prescribed conditions,
which is then scored according to definite rules, allowing professionals to compare the child's performance
to that of other children who have taken the same test.
- thiomersal
- a mercury based preservative used in some vaccines to prevent contamination, or in the process of producing inactivated vaccines.
- tic
- an involuntary, spasmodic, repetitive, stereotyped movement of small groups of muscles, which serves no apparent purpose. An individual with a tic may try to disguise or hide the tic in a seemingly purposeful movement, and the movement may ultimately be shaped into a mannerism.
- Tourette's Disorder
- a disorder characterised by a chronic shifting array of motor and vocal tics, together with attentional difficulties, obsessions, or compulsions. The tics may include grunts, cough, clicks, or sniffs, eye blinking, protrusions of the tongue, facial grimacing, hopping, or twitching. Complex tics may merge into complex compulsive behaviours such as squatting, deep-knee bends, and retracing steps. Coprolalia, characterised by the uttering of obscenities, may also occur.
- toxin
- a poison which may be produced by bacteria which can cause illness. For example, diptheria and tetanus are caused by toxins.
- tremor
- an involuntary, oscillating movement which may occur either at rest or with movement.
- twirling
- the continual rotation of the body in the direction in which the head is turned. Seen in autism.
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- vaccine
- vaccines use part of a germ which causes disease to confer immunity.
They cannot cause the disease for which they give protection, except rarely the oral polio vaccine.
- validity
- the extent to which a test or observation actually measures what it is intended to measure.
- virus
- an organism that needs to live inside another cell to grow and reproduce. Viruses cause many types of disease.
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