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body contouring

Any form of cosmetic surgery used to shape, sculpt, or reshape body lines. It includes “lifts,” e.g., face-lift, and abdominoplasty.

body dysmorphic disorder

ABBR: BDD. A preoccupation with one or more imagined defects in appearance. The disorder is also known colloquially as athletica nervosa. SEE: muscle dysmorphia.

body image, disturbed

Confusion in [and/or dissatisfaction with] mental picture of one’s physical self. SEE: body dysmorphic disorder; Nursing Diagnoses Appendix.

body jewelry

Any adornment placed through and attached to a body part, e.g., belly or nipple rings, nose studs, or tongue bars.

image Foreign objects placed in body parts may interfere with radiological imaging or invasive procedures or may conduct electricity during surgery. The body jewelry, as well as rings, necklaces, eyeglasses or lenses, and dentures, may have to be removed before surgery for the patient’s safety.

body language

Nonverbal communication that reveals the attitude or mood through physical gestures, posture, or proximity. A grimace, shrug, silence, smile, wink, raised eyebrows, avoidance, turning away, or even fighting are examples of nonverbal communication. SYN: gestural communication; nonverbal communication. SEE: kinesics.

body packing, body packer syndrome

The ingestion of a container, esp. a plastic bag, filled with an illegal drug. This technique is used by drug smugglers to evade detection while carrying small amounts of cocaine, methamphetamines, or narcotics through security points. The container passes through the gastrointestinal tract and is recovered after defecation. If it ruptures, dissolves, or is punctured, it may release dangerous quantities of drug into the carrier. SYN: body stuffing.

body piercing

Placing an object, usually a metal or plastic ornament, into a body part such as the ears, navel, nose, lips, tongue, nipple, or genitalia. Piercing may be associated with problems such as local skin infections, the transmission of blood-borne infections, and allergic reactions to the object.

body rocking

SEE: under rocking.

body scheme

Knowledge of one’s body parts and their relative positions. SEE: proprioception.

body stuffing

Body packing.

body surface area

The surface area of the body expressed in square meters. It can be estimated by taking the square root of the product of the patient’s height and weight, divided by 3600. Body surface area is an important measure in calculating pediatric dosages and drug dosages in chemotherapy, managing burn patients and patients with other skin diseases, and determining radiation doses. Nomograms for accurately determining body surface area are available for both pediatric and adult patients. SEE: burn; rule of nines.

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