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Cardiovascular and blood conditions

1,492 articles

Acute rheumatic pericarditis

Acute rheumatic pericarditis is inflammation of the pericardium, the sac surrounding the heart, occurring during acute rheumatic fever, an autoimmune disease following group A streptococcal throat infection.

Acute undifferentiated leukemia

Acute undifferentiated leukemia (AUL), part of acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage, is a rare acute leukemia whose blasts express immature markers like CD34, HLA-DR, and TdT but lack myeloid and lymphoid lineage-specific markers.

Adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia is a cancer of blood-forming tissue in which lymphoid precursor cells proliferate in the bone marrow, with far worse outcomes than in children.

Adult congenital heart disease

Adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) is the specialized lifelong care of adults born with heart defects, who face ongoing risks from their anatomy and childhood surgeries.

Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma

Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) is a rare mature T-cell malignancy caused by HTLV-1, affecting 2 to 5 percent of carriers and treated with chemotherapy or observation by subtype.

Advanced and refractory heart failure

Advanced heart failure, also called stage D or refractory heart failure, is the terminal stage of heart failure, with severe symptoms at rest despite guideline-directed therapy.

Agenesis of the superior vena cava

Agenesis of the superior vena cava is an uncommon congenital malformation in which the vessel returning blood from the upper body to the heart is missing.

Aggressive NK-cell leukemia

Aggressive NK-cell leukemia (ANKL, aggressive natural killer-cell leukemia) is a rare EBV-associated systemic malignancy of mature NK cells, mainly affecting young Asian adults, presenting with fever, hepatosplenomegaly, and coagulopathy, with a median survival of about 2 months.

Agranulocytosis

Agranulocytosis: severe neutrophil deficiency (ANC <500/µL), usually drug-induced (clozapine, antithyroid drugs, metamizole), presenting with fever and infection; about 5% lethality, treated with drug stop, antibiotics, G-CSF.

AH amyloidosis

AH amyloidosis (heavy chain amyloidosis) is a rare systemic amyloidosis with fibrils of monoclonal immunoglobulin heavy chains from a plasma cell neoplasm, mainly renal, about 2.3% of typed cases.

Air embolism

Air embolism (gas embolism): air bubbles entering veins or arteries, blocking blood flow. Venous form reaches the lungs; arterial form causes stroke or cardiac ischemia. Mainly procedure-related (central lines, surgery, diving); treated with oxygen, positioning, hyperbaric therapy.

Akuba

Akuba (AKUBA, AK 778; CVCL_W933) is a human B-cell cancer cell line from EBV-related Burkitt lymphoma of Kenyan origin, EBV-transformed, with a MYC-IGL fusion (t(8;22)), heterozygous TP53 p.Arg248Gln, 21-hour doubling time, and type II EBV latency.

AL amyloidosis

AL amyloidosis (amyloid light-chain, primary amyloidosis) is a clonal plasma cell disorder where misfolded immunoglobulin light chains deposit as amyloid fibrils, damaging heart and kidneys; treated with Dara-CyBorD, about 10 cases per million yearly.

Alemtuzumab

Alemtuzumab (Campath, MabCampath, Lemtrada) is a humanized anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody, FDA-approved in 2001 for fludarabine-failed B-cell CLL, fully approved in 2007 after CAM307, withdrawn in the EU in 2012, and repurposed as Lemtrada for relapsing multiple sclerosis.

ALK-positive large B-cell lymphoma

ALK-positive large B-cell lymphoma (ALK+ LBCL) is a rare, aggressive subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma that expresses the ALK protein due to an ALK gene rearrangement.

ALL-SIL

ALL-SIL (SIL-ALL, CVCL_1805, DSMZ ACC 511) is a human T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell line from a 17-year-old male at relapse, carrying NUP214-ABL1 fusion and NOTCH1 mutations, TLX1-positive, GSI-sensitive.

Alloimmune haemolytic anaemia

Alloimmune hemolytic anemia is anemia caused by antibodies from another individual destroying red blood cells, arising most often through transfusion, pregnancy, or transplantation, and including disease of the fetus and newborn.

Alloimmune thrombocytopenia

Alloimmune thrombocytopenia, chiefly fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (FNAIT, NAIT), is maternal anti-HPA antibody-mediated fetal platelet destruction, causing thrombocytopenia and intracranial hemorrhage; treated with IVIG and platelet transfusion.

Alpha-thalassemia (α-thalassemia)

Alpha-thalassemia (α-thalassemia), also called alpha thalassemia, is an inherited anemia from HBA1/HBA2 alpha-globin gene deletions, ranging from silent carrier and trait to HbH disease and fatal Hb Bart hydrops fetalis; mitapivat approved 2025.

Alpha-thalassemia-myelodysplastic syndrome

Alpha-thalassemia-myelodysplastic syndrome (ATMDS, acquired hemoglobin H disease) is a rare acquired alpha-thalassemia caused by somatic ATRX mutations in myelodysplastic syndrome, affecting mainly older men, with about 80 cases reported.

Alteplase

Alteplase (Activase, Actilyse) is a recombinant tissue plasminogen activator thrombolytic for acute ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction, massive pulmonary embolism, and catheter occlusion; FDA approved 1987, 0.9 mg/kg stroke dosing, main risk bleeding.

Aluminium toxicity in people on dialysis

Aluminium toxicity in dialysis patients: accumulation from contaminated dialysate water and aluminium phosphate binders, causing dialysis dementia, osteomalacia, and microcytic anemia; prevented by reverse osmosis water and monitored via serum aluminium and DFO tests.

Alvocidib

Alvocidib, developed as flavopiridol, is a semisynthetic flavonoid CDK inhibitor derived from rohitukine that entered human trials in the late 1990s as a treatment for acute myeloid leukemia.

American Heart Association

American Heart Association (AHA), not to be confused with the American Hospital Association: US nonprofit founded June 10, 1924 in Chicago by six cardiologists; reorganized 1948; funds cardiovascular and stroke research, issues ACC/AHA guidelines, and runs CPR training.

American Journal of Hematology

American Journal of Hematology (Am J Hematol), monthly Wiley hematology journal founded 1976 by Ananda S. Prasad, edited by Carlo Brugnara since 2006; impact factor rose from 1.88 to over 10; known for Annual Clinical Updates series.

American Journal of Hypertension

The American Journal of Hypertension is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering hypertension, first published in 1988 and published by Oxford University Press since 2013.

American Society of Hematology

The American Society of Hematology, founded in 1958 in Atlantic City, is the world's largest hematology society, with over 18,000 members and the peer-reviewed Blood journals.

Aminocaproic acid

Aminocaproic acid (EACA, Amicar), a synthetic lysine-analog antifibrinolytic, competitively blocks plasminogen activation to control bleeding; first described 1957 in Japan, FDA approved 1964, used in cardiac surgery blood conservation.

AML risk stratification and prognosis

AML risk stratification estimates a patient's odds of remission, relapse, and survival from chromosome abnormalities and gene mutations, using the European LeukemiaNet 2022 groups with measurable residual disease layered on top.

Amniotic fluid embolism

Amniotic fluid embolism (AFE), also called anaphylactoid syndrome of pregnancy, is a rare obstetric emergency where amniotic fluid enters maternal circulation, causing cardiovascular collapse, hypoxia, and DIC; incidence about 1.7 per 100,000 maternities with 13–30% case fatality.