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cirrhosis Definition

cir·rho·sis (sə rōsis)

noun pl. -·ses′-sēz′

a degenerative disease in an organ of the body, esp. the liver, marked by excess formation of connective tissue and, usually, subsequent painful swelling

Etymology: ModL < Gr kirrhos, tawny + -osis: so named by R. T. H. Laënnec (1781-1826), Fr physician, because of the orange-yellow appearance of the diseased liver

cirrhosis Related Forms
cir·rhotic (-rätik) adjective
cirrhosis Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • liver: He had cirrhosis of the liver from years of alcohol abuse.

Converse of object

  • develop: Others may develop cirrhosis or liver cancer, which can be fatal.
  • cause: I have problems with my liver which has caused Cirrhosis.
  • call: This cancer usually occurs in people who have chronic scarring of the liver, called cirrhosis.
  • include: Individuals who drink alcohol socially may develop alcoholic liver damage, including cirrhosis.
  • have: He had cirrhosis of the liver from years of alcohol abuse.
  • compensate: Compensated cirrhosis may be managed with abstinence from alcohol and nutritional support as above.

Adjective modifier

  • biliary: For some reason the body mounts an attack on the liver in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis.
  • decompensated: If the liver function fails this is known as decompensated cirrhosis and without transplantation the outcome is likely to be fatal.
  • hepatic: Zyban is contraindicated for use in patients with severe hepatic cirrhosis.
  • alcoholic: In everyday life, however, the term cirrhosis has tended to become linked with alcoholic cirrhosis.
  • primary: For some reason the body mounts an attack on the liver in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis.
  • advanced: Liver surgery in people with advanced cirrhosis can cause the liver to stop working altogether.

Modifies a noun

  • mortality: Scottish cirrhosis mortality rates are now among the highest in western Europe.
  • death: The CMO report shows that liver cirrhosis deaths have risen in most age groups over the last 30 years of the 20th century.
  • rate: Scottish cirrhosis mortality rates are now among the highest in western Europe.
  • result: Liver cirrhosis results in jaundice, abdominal swelling and a propensity to bleed from dilated veins ( varices ) in the gullet and stomach.

Noun used with modifier

  • liver: He says Britain used to be renowned for its low rates of liver cirrhosis.
  • cause: Drugs and chemicals: a number of drugs and chemicals can cause liver damage but few cause cirrhosis.
  • portal: Portal cirrhosis of the liver was said to have contributed to the death.
cirrhosis Quotes

Homosexuality wasthebadge oftheupperclass and the sign of a revolt against it; and it is small wonder that someone locked for a lifetime in this impossible contradiction should end up with cirrhosis of the liver.

—Eagleton,Terry

Browse dictionary entries near cirrhosis

  1. cirrate
  2. cirque
  3. Cirenaica
  4. Circus Maximus
  5. circus catch
  6. circus
  7. circumvolve
  8. circumvolution
  9. circumvent
  10. circumvallate
  1. cirri
  2. cirriform
  3. cirriped
  4. cirro-
  5. cirrocumulus
  6. cirrose
  7. cirrostratus
  8. cirrus
  9. cirsoid
  10. CIS