hypersplenism
- noun
- /ˌhaɪpərˈsplɛnɪzəm/
- Specialized
- The doctor explained that the patient was suffering from hypersplenism, which caused a decrease in red blood cells.
Examples
-
Splenectomy was done at age 3 months for persistent massive splenomegaly with hypersplenism.
Academic text (2000) -
A sister and brother (patients 2 and 3) born to unrelated healthy parents were referred for massive splenomegaly with hypersplenism.
Academic text (2000) -
Fresh samples of spleen were obtained at the time of elective surgery for intractable hypersplenism from patients with Gaucher's disease.
Academic text (1996) -
After the diagnosis of hypersplenism, the doctor proposed treatments to address the enlarged spleen and restore healthy blood cell levels.
-
Symptoms of hypersplenism can include fatigue and frequent infections due to the reduction in white blood cells.
How Severe
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
9.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
hypersplenism = splenism (semi-transparent) = hyper + splen + ism
The word is built from the medical base splenism with the prefix hyper-, but the full term is specialized and not fully inferable for general learners.
Etymology
Hypersplenism breaks into parts: hyper- meaning 'too much' (as in hyperactive), spleen the organ that 'filters the blood', and -ism meaning 'a condition'. So, hypersplenism is a condition where the spleen is too large or too active and removes too many blood cells, causing low blood counts.