Acute (medicine)
Acute (medicine)
Acute (/əˈkjuːt/; from Latin acutus, meaning "sharp") is a term used in medicine to describe the nature of a disease, sign, symptom or condition. In medical context, 'acute' often implies a condition that is of short duration but typically severe.
Etymology
The term 'acute' comes from the Latin acutus, meaning "sharp". It was used in this sense by the second-century physician Galen, and has been used in the same sense ever since.
Definition
In medicine, the term 'acute' might be used to describe a disease that is either:
- Short in duration, rapidly progressive, and in need of urgent care, such as an acute myocardial infarction (heart attack), or
- Extremely severe but of short duration, such as acute pain.
Related Terms
- Chronic: A term used to describe a disease or condition that is persistent or otherwise long-lasting in its effects. The term is usually applied to diseases that last more than three months.
- Subacute: A term used to describe the course of a disease that falls between acute and chronic.
- Acute on chronic: This term is used when an acute condition arises in a patient with a pre-existing chronic condition.
See Also
References
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Acute (medicine)
- Wikipedia's article - Acute (medicine)
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