Glossary

Below are some simple descriptions of the terms used on this website. A more detailed glossary is available on the following website:

Cochrane Consumer Network

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A
Abstract: A scientific abstract is a short summary of a full text journal article about a particular topic.

Acupuncture: Traditional Chinese acupuncture is based on the idea of 'qi' (vital energy), which is said to travel around the body along specific channels or 'meridians'. Fine needles are used to puncture the skin at certain defined points to restore the balance of ‘qi’. Western Acupuncture uses the same needling technique but is based on affecting nerve impulses and the central nervous system. Lasers, diodes, heat from the herb ‘moxa’ (moxabustion), suction cups and finger pressure may be used instead of needles.

Adverse effect: A side effect or negative effect from medication or treatment.

Aromatherapy massage: Uses essential oils blended with a base oil, such as almond or grapeseed oil, as a massage oil.

B
Bias: A deviation of results from the truth. Any trend in the collection, analysis, interpretation, publication, or review of data that can lead to conclusions that are systematically different from the truth.

Blinding: Blinding occurs when researchers and/or subjects involved in a clinical trial do not know to which treatment group people are assigned. Blinding is used as a way of reducing bias. When both researchers and subjects don’t know who is receiving which treatment, the study is referred to as “double-blind”. When either the researchers or the subjects don’t know who is receiving which treatment, the study is referred to as “single-blind”.

C
Case series study: A case-series study is the report of a number of case studies about a common topic.

Case study: A case study is the report of a single example or event, such as an “interesting person” or an “unusual situation”.

Case-control study: A study in which people with a disease or condition (cases) are compared to another group of people from the same population who don't have that disease or condition (controls). In this way risk factors for developing the disease or condition can be identified.

Chiropractic: Used almost entirely to treat musculo-skeletal complaints through adjusting muscles, tendons and joints and using manipulation and massage techniques. Diagnostic procedures include case histories, conventional clinical examination and x-rays. Chiropractic was originally based on the idea that 'reduced nerve flow' led to disease.

Clinical trial: See "randomised controlled trial"

Cochrane: The Cochrane Collaboration is a non-profit group involving people from throughout the world working together to sift through and analyse research on the effects of health care. The Collaboration prepares, maintains, and disseminates systematic reviews of the effects of health care. The reviews are published in the "Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews" - one of the components of a regular, electronic publication called "The Cochrane Library".

Cohort study: A study in which a group of people (or cohort) are identified then followed over time to see what happens to them (e.g. to see which people become ill and which do not).

Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a broad domain of healing resources that encompasses all health systems, modalities, and practices and their accompanying theories and beliefs, other than those intrinsic to the politically dominant health system of a particular society or culture in a given historical period. CAM includes all such practices and ideas self-defined by their users as preventing or treating illness or promoting health and well-being. Examples of CAM include acupuncture, chiropractic, herbal medicine, homeopathy, and osteopathy.

D
Deep vein thrombosis: A blood clot (thrombus) in a deep vein in the thigh or leg.

Double-blind: See under “blinding”

E
Eczema: An inflammatory skin disorder that is characterized by itching, scaling, and thickening of the skin.

Efficacy: The ability of a treatment to cause the desired effect - that is, whether the treatment works

Electroacupuncture: An acupuncture technique that applies small electrical currents to needles that have been inserted at specific points on the body.

Essential oils: are volatile liquid substances that smell like the plant they are derived from. The oils are extracted from the flowers, bark, leaves, roots or fruit depending on the type of plant. As essential oils are highly concentrated, they are added to a base oil, such as almond or grapeseed oil before being used for massage.

Evidence-based: Evidence-based research involves looking at and valuing ALL the evidence on a particular topic, not just the evidence found in a few papers published in large, easy-to-find journals.

External cephalic version (ECV): A method of manually massaging the baby into a better position. The doctor uses his or her hands on the outside of the abdomen to try to turn the baby.

F
Fascia: A sheet or thin band of fibrous tissue below the skin that covers the underlying tissues, separates different layers of tissue, covers muscles and some organs of the body.

G
There are no glossary terms.

H
Haemodynamically stable: Refers to the fact that the status of a person�s circulatory system (eg measurements of heart rate, blood pressure etc) is unchanging.

Health Technology Assessment: A Health Technology Assessment (HTA) is a research-based assessment of relevant available knowledge of a health or disease related issue. Scientific evidence is reviewed for a HTA, as well as the social and ethical aspects and the effect of policy in relation to the issue at hand. The goal of an HTA is to provide input into decision-making in health purchasing, policy and practice.

Herbal medicine: A system of medicine which uses various remedies derived from plants and plant extracts to treat disorders and maintain good health. Another term for this type of treatment is phytotherapy.

Homoeopathy: A therapy based on the theory of treating like with like. Homoeopathic remedies use highly diluted substances that if given in higher doses to a healthy person would produce the symptoms that the dilutions are being given to treat. In assessing the patient homoeopaths often take into account a range of physical, emotional and lifestyle factors which contribute to the diagnosis.

Hypoglycaemia: An abnormal decrease of sugar in the blood.

Hypoglycaemic drugs: Drugs that decrease the amount of sugar in the blood.

I
INR test: Test used to monitor the effect of blood thinning treatment.

Intention to treat (ITT): The preferred method of analysing the statistical data from randomised controlled trials, whereby all participants are analysed in the treatment groups to which they were randomised regardless of what treatment they actually received.

J
There are no glossary terms.

K
There are no glossary terms.

L
Ligament: A band of fibrous tissue that connects bone to bone or cartilage to bone, supporting or strengthening a joint.

M
Meridian: Specific interconnected channels in the body through which the body's vital energy ('qi' or 'chi') circulates.

Moxibustion: Is a traditional Chinese technique that consists of the burning of sticks or cones made from the herb moxa (Artemisia vulgaris, also known as mugwort) on or beside an acupuncture point.

N
There are no glossary terms.

O
Observational study: A survey or non-experimental study (eg. case-control study or cohort study), where researchers are examining and reporting on what is happening, without deliberately intervening in the course of events.

Osteopathy: A system of diagnosis and treatment, usually by manipulation, that mainly focuses on musculo-skeletal problems, but a few schools claim benefits across a wider spectrum of disorders. Historically differs from chiropractic in its underlying theory that it is impairment of blood supply and not nerve supply that leads to problems.

Osteoporosis: A condition that is characterized by a decrease in bone mass and density, causing bones to become fragile.

P
Perinatal morbidity and mortality: Health problems (morbidity) and deaths (mortality) associated with the period around childbirth.

Placebo: A placebo is a fake, dummy or sham treatment that is given to people in the control group of a clinical trial. A placebo is meant to look, smell, taste and/or feel the same as the real treatment, so that people can’t distinguish whether they are receiving the real treatment or the placebo. The difference is that a placebo is inactive and harmless. Some examples of a placebo include sugar pills, starch pills, or “fake” surgery.

Placebo effect: The placebo effect is the measurable, observable, and/or felt improvement (or decline) in health, which can not be attributed to the treatment. It is often seen in people who are receiving a placebo treatment in a clinical trial. The reason why an inert substance or fake therapy would produce an effect is not known. Positive effects from a placebo are believed by some to be psychological (i.e. due to belief in the treatment), while others believe that it is due to an illness or injury taking its natural course. Some people believe that the placebo effect is due to the fact that showing attention and care to a patient itself triggers reactions in the body that promotes healing. Some people believe that as long as a treatment is effective, it doesn't matter if the effect is due to the placebo effect or otherwise.

Posterior (occipitoposterior): A position in which the back of the baby's head (the occiput) is facing towards the mother's back: this may cause a longer or more painful labour.

Primigravida (pl. primigravidae): A woman pregnant for the first time.

Q
Qi or chi: The circulating life energy.

Quasi-randomised trial: A clinical trial in which people are allocated to receive either the treatment or the placebo using a method that is not strictly random. Quasi-random methods include: allocation by the person's date of birth, by the day of the week or month of the year, by a person's medical record number, or just allocating every alternate person. Quasi-random allocation may look random, but it is not, because the group to which a person will be allocated can be predicted. People may then be able to manipulate who goes into which group, thus introducing bias into the study.

R
Randomised controlled trial: A study in which people are assigned by chance (e.g. flip of a coin) to receive either an experimental treatment or no treatment (e.g. placebo or usual care). People in the study are the same at onset and are cared for in exactly the same way throughout the trial. Any differences between the two groups at the end of the trial can then be attributed to the difference in treatment alone, and not to bias or chance.

S
SIGN: Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network.

Systematic review: A review of studies (usually clinical trials) in which evidence has been systematically searched for, studied, assessed, and summarised according to predetermined criteria. Sometimes referred to as a meta-analysis.

T
Tendon: The tissue by which a muscle attaches to bone.

Transverse (occipitotransverse): A position in which the back of the baby's head (the occiput) is facing towards the mothers side: this may cause a longer or more painful labour.

Trigger points: Certain places on muscles that appear exceptionally tender to touch.

U
There are no glossary terms.

V
Vascular: Relating to the blood vessels of the body.

W
There are no glossary terms.

X
There are no glossary terms.

Y
Yin and Yang: The two opposite elements that form the universe, and are present in every living thing, ideally existing in harmony. Yin represents 'night', 'negative' or 'cold', yang represents 'day', 'positive' or 'hot'. Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners believe that if one or other of these components is out of balance, it can lead to illness.

Z
There are no glossary terms.