Dyscrasia
Encyclopedia
Dyscrasia is a concept from ancient Greek medicine
with the word "dyskrasia", meaning bad mixture.
The concept of dyscrasia was developed by the ancient Greek
physician Galen
(130–199 AD), who elaborated a model of health and disease as a structure of elements, qualities, humors, organs, and temperaments. Health was understood in this perspective to be a condition of harmony or balance among these basic components, called eucrasia. Disease was interpreted as the disproportion of bodily fluids or four humours
: phlegm, blood, and yellow and black bile. The imbalance was called dyscrasia.
, black bile, yellow bile, and water (phlegm
). These humors were believed to exist in the body, and any change in the balance among the four of them was the direct cause of all disease
.
This is similar to the concepts of bodily humors in the Tibetan Medical tradition and the Indian Ayurvedic system, which both relate health and disease to the balance and imbalance of the three bodily humors, generally translated as wind, bile, and phlegm.
This is also similar to the (Chinese) concept of Yin and Yang
that an imbalance of the two polarities caused ailment.
"Plasma cell
dyscrasia" is sometimes considered synonymous with paraproteinemia
or monoclonal gammopathy
.
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
with the word "dyskrasia", meaning bad mixture.
The concept of dyscrasia was developed by the ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
physician Galen
Galen
Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus , better known as Galen of Pergamon , was a prominent Roman physician, surgeon and philosopher...
(130–199 AD), who elaborated a model of health and disease as a structure of elements, qualities, humors, organs, and temperaments. Health was understood in this perspective to be a condition of harmony or balance among these basic components, called eucrasia. Disease was interpreted as the disproportion of bodily fluids or four humours
Four humours
Four Temperaments is a theory of proto-psychology that stems from the ancient medical concept of humorism and suggests that four bodily fluids affect human personality traits and behaviors.- History and development :...
: phlegm, blood, and yellow and black bile. The imbalance was called dyscrasia.
Ancient use
To the Greeks, it meant an imbalance of the four humors: bloodBlood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
, black bile, yellow bile, and water (phlegm
Phlegm
Phlegm is a liquid secreted by the mucous membranes of mammalians. Its definition is limited to the mucus produced by the respiratory system, excluding that from the nasal passages, and particularly that which is expelled by coughing . Phlegm is in essence a water-based gel consisting of...
). These humors were believed to exist in the body, and any change in the balance among the four of them was the direct cause of all disease
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
.
This is similar to the concepts of bodily humors in the Tibetan Medical tradition and the Indian Ayurvedic system, which both relate health and disease to the balance and imbalance of the three bodily humors, generally translated as wind, bile, and phlegm.
This is also similar to the (Chinese) concept of Yin and Yang
Yin and yang
In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...
that an imbalance of the two polarities caused ailment.
Modern use
It is still occasionally used in medical context for an unspecified disorder of the blood. Specifically it is defined in current medicine as a morbid general state resulting from the presence of abnormal material in the blood, usually applied to diseases affecting blood cells or platelets."Plasma cell
Plasma cell
Plasma cells, also called plasma B cells, plasmocytes, and effector B cells, are white blood cells which produce large volumes of antibodies. They are transported by the blood plasma and the lymphatic system...
dyscrasia" is sometimes considered synonymous with paraproteinemia
Paraproteinemia
Paraproteinemia, or monoclonal gammopathy, is the presence of excessive amounts of a single monoclonal gammaglobulin in the blood...
or monoclonal gammopathy
Monoclonal gammopathy
Monoclonal gammopathy is a synonym for paraproteinemia.- External links :*...
.