Glossary

This glossary explains important words and concepts used throughout our website. You can search the glossary alphabetically or use the search box.

A

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B

Bloodletting was a medical practice used for more than 3,000 years in which blood was deliberately removed from the body to treat disease. It was based on the theory of the four humours: blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. Physicians believed illness resulted from an imbalance of these humours and that removing blood could restore health. Methods included opening a vein to drain blood directly from the body, cutting the skin and applying heated cups to draw blood to the surface (“cupping”), and using leeches that sucked blood from the patient. Bloodletting remained common until the late nineteenth century.

C

  • Carcinomas refer to malignant neoplasms of epithelial origin or cancer of the internal or external lining of the body. Carcinomas account for 80 to 90 percent of all cancer cases. They include the most known cancers such as breast, lung, colorectal and prostate cancers. World Health Organization)
  • Cause of death: the disease or injury which started the train (sequence) of morbid (disease-related) events which led directly to death, or the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury. (definition from the International classification of diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization)
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

D

  • Cause of death: the disease or injury which started the train (sequence) of morbid (disease-related) events which led directly to death, or the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury. (definition from the International classification of diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization)
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

E

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Endemic diseases: Some diseases are constantly present within a population. Their number may rise or decrease a little, but they remain at the “usual level”, they are what epidemiologist call ‘endemic’. Think of  the flu, or a common cold.  An epidemic occurs when the number of people with the disease increases quickly and exceeds what would be expected in the population.  
  • Epidemic diseases: Unlike endemic disease, that are constantly present within a population, such as the flu or common cold, an epidemic occurs when the number of people with the disease increases quickly and exceeds what would be expected in the population.  Learn more about what is an epidemic here. 

F

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

G

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

H

  • Herd immunity: Herd immunity: A level of protection within a population that occurs when a sufficiently high proportion of individuals are immune to an infectious disease (through vaccination or prior infection), making its spread unlikely and indirectly protecting those who are not immune, such as people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. Learn more about herd immunity here.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

I

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

J

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

K

Koch’s Postulates: In 1882, Robert Koch identified the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis as the cause of tuberculosis. To prove this, he developed a set of principles known as Koch’s postulates, which laid the foundation for modern microbiology. Learn more about Koch’s postulates here.

  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

L

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

M

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

N

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

O

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

P

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

Q

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

R

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

S

  • Sarcomas: refer to cancers that originate in supportive and connective tissues such as bones, ligaments, cartilage, muscle, and fat. Sarcomas are both highly diverse and rare, accounting for less than 2% of all malignant tumours overall. Their share varies strongly by age: they represent over 10% of cancers in children and adolescents (0–19 years), around 5% in young adults (20–39), and only about 1% in people aged 70 and older.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

T

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

U

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

V

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

W

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

X

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

Y

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year. 

Z

  • ECG: electrocardiogram is a recording of the heart that shows how your heart is functioning. Doctors place small adhesive electrodes (stickers) or suction cups on the chest and record the heart rhythm and heart rate, looking for abnormalities. The test only takes a few minutes and is completely painless.
  • Crude Death Rate: the total number of deaths in a year divided by the total population in that year.