amicus mortis |
(Latin) death friend |
ars moriendi |
(Latin) the art of dying |
bronchoscopy |
endoscopic examination of the lungs |
Cheyne-Stokes respiration |
a pattern of breathing commonly observed in the dying |
chondrosarcoma |
malignant bone tumour, arising from cartilage |
cirrhosis |
permanent scarring of the liver, commonly caused by alcohol |
Clostridium difficile |
a bowel infection, usually caused by antibiotics |
concierge doctor |
a private physician with a small clientele, permanently on call for his or her patients |
CPR |
cardio-pulmonary resuscitation |
cystic fibrosis |
inherited lung condition; commonly causes premature death |
DNACPR |
Do Not Attempt Cardio-pulmonary Resuscitation |
endoscopy |
internal examination of bodily organs (stomach, bowel, lungs) using a flexible tube (endoscope) |
High Dependency Unit (HDU) |
a hospital ward for patients requiring close monitoring. HDU patients are not as unstable as those requiring intensive care. |
Hospital Standardized Mortality Ratio (HSMR) |
a statistical tool to calculate the number of ‘expected’ deaths in a hospital |
intubate |
to place a tube in the patient’s airway, to facilitate artificial ventilation |
kinesiology |
a form of alternative medicine based on testing muscle strength |
Liverpool Care Pathway |
a care pathway which guided treatment of dying patients in English hospitals |
locked-in syndrome |
a type of stroke affecting the brain stem. The patient is aware, but almost completely paralysed |
metastasis |
secondary cancer deposit in another body organ |
motor neurone disease |
a chronic neuro-degenerative disease, which causes progressive weakness and wasting of muscles |
myelodysplastic syndrome |
a form of bone marrow cancer |
myocardial infarction |
coronary artery thrombosis (clot) leading to death of heart muscle |
PEG tube |
Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy. A feeding tube placed directly into the stomach cavity through the abdominal wall |
propofol |
commonly used anaesthetic drug |
syringe-driver |
a small infusion pump used to deliver a continuous supply of painkilling and sedative drugs |
thanatology |
the study of death |