Glossary of Chiropractic & Medical Terms

HEALTH - A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

HEALTH RECORD: All documents and recorded information relating to the clinical management of the patient.

HEMANGIOMA - A benign tumor consisting of a mass of blood vessels.

HEMATOMA - A blood clot.

HEMIANOPIA - Loss of vision of one-half of the visual field.

HEMIPLEGIA - Paralysis of one side of the body.

HEMORRHAGE - Bleeding due to the escape of blood from a blood vessel.

HERNIATED DISC – Extrusion of part of the softer nucleus pulposus material of the disc by way of defects in the firmer, outer annulus fibrosis portion of the disc. If greatly herniated, the material can compress the spinal cord or nerves in or exiting the spinal canal.

HOMEOPATHY - A therapeutic system developed by Samuel Hahnemann that uses extremely dilute substances to trigger a person’s innate capacity to heal, based on the law of similars, the observation that certain substances can produce in healthy people the same symptoms they cure in the sick. The first observation was that the symptoms of an illness were identical to the symptoms experienced by a healthy individual who had been given a drug which could treat that illness.

HORMONE - A chemical substance formed in one gland or part of the body and carried by the blood to another organ, which it stimulates to functional activity.

HYDROXYAPATITE (HA) - The lattice-like structure of bone composed of calcium and phosphorous crystals which deposits on collagen to provide the rigid structure of bone.

HYPERACUSIS - Abnormal acuteness of hearing or auditory sensation.

HYPERESTHESIA - Excessive sensibility to touch, pain, or other stimuli.

HYPERTENSION - High blood pressure.

HYPOTHALAMUS - A collection of specialized nerve cells at the base of the brain which control the anterior and posterior pituitary secretions and is involved in other basic regulatory functions, such as temperature control and attention.