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Glite Dictionary
carotid body

carotid body

7.2
A small group of cells near the split of the neck artery that senses blood oxygen and helps control breathing
  • noun
  • /kəˈrɒtɪd ˈbɒdi/
  • Specialized
translation icon : cuerpo carotídeo
  • Intravagal paragangliomas can usually be differentiated from carotid body tumors by the site of origin.
  • carotid body tumor

Examples

  • We advocate the use of noninvasive MRA with contrast enhancement to appropriately differentiate intravagal paragangliomas from carotid body tumors.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The carotid body detects changes in oxygen levels in the blood and sends signals to regulate breathing.

  • Histopathologic examination confirmed that it was a carotid body paraganglioma.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The case of intravagal paraganglioma described in this article represents an unusual presentation in that it mimicked a carotid body tumor on imaging, which is the method of diagnosing these tumors.

    Academic text (2005)

  • We report a case of an intravagal paraganglioma and a case of a carotid body tumor to illustrate a variable presentation of the former in which it mimicked the latter on preoperative imaging.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Both arise in the carotid space, but the former are centered 2 to 3 cm below the base of the skull, whereas carotid body tumors arise at the carotid bifurcation 7 to 8 cm below the skull base.

    Academic text (2005)

  • When the carotid body senses low oxygen, it alerts the brain to increase respiration and blood pressure.

  • The carotid bodies play a crucial role in monitoring blood oxygen levels and helping maintain respiratory function.

Surface Forms

carotid body singular
carotid bodies plural

Morphology

carotid + body

The phrase is compositionally understandable in that 'carotid' (relating to the carotid artery) plus 'body' (a physical structure) yields the idea of a bodily structure associated with the carotid artery, so location and nature are inferable. However, the specific biomedical function (a small chemoreceptor that monitors blood oxygen and regulates respiration) is specialized and not predictable from the constituents alone, so it is only partially transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

The name carotid body comes from a small body of tissue beside the carotid artery that works like a tiny 'sensor' checking the oxygen in the blood. That's why it means the small organ that detects blood oxygen and helps control breathing.