Medical Terms

This chapter is not an exhaustive or authoritative list of all diseases and obsolete medical terms. Further, the author is not a medical professional and the information contained within this chapter is not for medical use. This chapter is intended to help genealogists understand medical conditions, illnesses, etc. that affected our ancestors.

Click a letter to open that page of the dictionary:

G

gastritis

Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach.

 

glandular fever

Mononucleosis.

 

gout

Any inflammation, not just in a joint or extremity, caused by the formation of crystals of oxalic acid when it accumulates in the body. It most often occurs in joints where circulation is poor, and can even cause gallstones or kidney stones. Gout is a disease caused by a buildup of urate or uric acid in the body, which crystallizes out in areas without much rapid blood flow and can cause damage when, for example a toe is stubbed.

 

grippe

An old term for influenza.