Medical Term:
elephantiasis
Pronunciation: el′ĕ-fan-tī′ă-sis
Definition: Hypertrophy, edema, and fibrosis of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, especially of the lower limbs and genitalia with hydrocele, or enlargement of a limb, usually caused by long-standing obstructed lymphatic vessels, most commonly the result of years of infection by filarial worms such as Wuchereria bancrofti or Brugia malayi.
Synonym(s): elephant leg
[G. fr. elephas, elephant]
See Also: filariasis
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Examples: glitazone, GI cocktail, etc.
