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ABBR: POD. A location designated for the distribution of health care resources during epidemics or other massive emergencies.
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1. Reaching a point. 2. Forming a localized collection of pus near the body surface.
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point-of-care testing
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ABBR: POCT. A clinical laboratory measurement made at the bedside, in the clinic, or in a satellite lab, rather than at a centralized laboratory. POCT is designed to improve the turnaround time and usefulness of lab testing. Examples of POCT are nitrazine strips for measuring vaginal pH, refractometers for measuring urine specific gravity, glucometers for measuring blood sugar, and immunoassays for measuring the creatine phosphokinase isoenzymes, myoglobin, and troponin I.
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A geographically limited, fixed location from which a disease or an environmental pollutant spreads.
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(poyz) [J.M. Poiseuille] The unit of viscosity; the tangential shearing force required to be applied to an area of 1 cm2 between two parallel planes of 1 cm2 in area and 1 cm apart in order to produce a velocity of flow of the liquid of 1 cm/sec.
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(pwa-zŭy′) [Jean Marie Poiseuille, Fr. physiologist, 1799–1869] A law that states that the rapidity of the capillary current is directly proportional to the fourth power of the radius of the capillary tube, the pressure on the fluid, and inversely proportional to the viscosity of the liquid and the length of the tube.
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(pŏy-zĭn-dĕks) A computerized database, revised quarterly, on over 300,000 commercial compounds. For information, contact Micromedex, Inc., 600 Grant St., Denver, CO 80203; (800) 525-9083.
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(poyz′ŏn) [Fr. poison fr. L. potio, a poisonous draft] Any substance taken into the body by ingestion, inhalation, injection, or absorption that interferes with normal physiology. Virtually any substance can be poisonous if consumed in sufficient quantity; therefore poison more often implies an excessive degree of dosage rather than a specific group of substances. Aspirin is not usually thought of as a poison, but overdoses of this drug kill more children accidentally each year than any of the traditional poisons. SEE: poisoning.
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cellular p. Anything that damages or kills cells.
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pesticidal p. Chemicals whose toxic properties are commercially exploited in agriculture, industry, or commerce to increase quantity, improve quality, or generally promote consumer acceptability of a variety of products. Common types include insecticides, rodenticides, herbicides, defoliants, fungicides, insect repellents, molluscicides, and some kinds of food additives. The wide variety of poisons commonly found in and around the home constitutes an important source of accidental poisonings.
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(poy′zŏn-ing) 1. Illness caused by a toxic substance ...