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alpha-adrenergic blocker

alpha-adrenergic blocker

4.7
A drug that relaxes certain muscles to lower blood pressure and help urine flow in men with an enlarged prostate
  • noun
  • /ˈælfə ˌædrəˈnɜrdʒɪk ˈblɑːkər/
  • Specialized
translation icon : bloqueador alfa-adrenérgico
  • Some patients with high blood pressure may benefit from taking an alpha-adrenergic blocker.

Examples

  • The doctor prescribed an alpha-adrenergic blocker to help relieve his symptoms of an enlarged prostate.

  • The doctor prescribed an alpha-adrenergic blocker for my high blood pressure.

  • Research into new alpha-adrenergic blockers is ongoing to improve treatment options.

  • Many patients benefit from alpha-adrenergic blockers to manage their symptoms.

  • Doctors often prescribe an alpha-adrenergic blocker to help lower a patient's high blood pressure.

  • The patient was relieved to find that the alpha-adrenergic blocker eased his symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

  • After the diagnosis, she started taking an alpha-adrenergic blocker as advised by her cardiologist.

Synonyms

alpha-adrenergic blocking agent
vsalpha-adrenergic blocker
  • Specialized
7.5

A medicine that relaxes blood vessel and bladder muscles to lower blood pressure and help pass urine

is identical in meaning but uses a more formal noun phrase
alpha-blocker
vsalpha-adrenergic blocker
  • Specialized
5.5

A drug that relaxes certain muscles to lower blood pressure and ease symptoms of an enlarged prostate

is more formal and descriptive, used in technical contexts
alpha blocker
vsalpha-adrenergic blocker
  • Specialized
5.2

A medicine that relaxes muscles in blood vessels and the prostate to lower blood pressure and help pass urine

is the broader medical label but focuses on receptor blocking action

Surface Forms

Morphology

alpha-adrenergic + blocker

The noun phrase is compositionally built: 'blocker' denotes an agent/drug that blocks, and 'alpha-adrenergic' specifies the biological target (alpha-adrenergic receptors). Although this is specialized medical terminology and may be unfamiliar to typical B1 learners, if a learner knows the constituent parts, the overall meaning ('a drug that blocks alpha-adrenergic receptors') is directly derivable.

Etymology

The term alpha-adrenergic blocker shows what the drug does: alpha names a kind of tiny 'lock' on cells, adrenergic means it responds to 'adrenaline' signals, and blocker means the medicine stops those signals. So imagine a key, 'adrenaline', trying to open a lock at the alpha spot but being held back, and that stopping helps muscles relax and 'lower blood pressure'.