Acidosis, metabolic -- Any of the various kinds of acidosis in which the acid-base status of the body shifts toward the acid side because of loss of base or retention of acids other than carbonic acid, in contrast to respiratory acidosis.

Acidosis, respiratory -- Acidosis due to excess retention of carbon dioxide in the body, as opposed to metabolic acidosis; it is seen in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other conditions that interfere with normal ventilation.

Anesthesia -- The loss of feeling or sensation caused by pharmacologic substances which is induced to allow the performance of surgery or other painful procedures.

Anesthesiology -- A specialty concerned with the study of anesthetics and anesthesia.

Apgar score -- A method to evaluate a newborn's adjustment to life outside the uterus (extrauterine life). Five items--heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, reflex irritability, and color--are evaluated 60 seconds after birth and five minutes later on a scale from 0-2 with 0 being the lowest and 2 being normal. A score of 0-3 indicates severe distress, 4-6 indicates moderate distress, and 7-10 indicates no difficulty in adjusting to extrauterine life.

Birth defect -- A physical or biochemical abnormality that is present at birth and may be inherited or environmentally induced.

Germ theory -- The doctrine that infectious diseases are caused by microorganisms.

Neonate -- A newborn child, especially one less than one month old.

Neonatology -- A subspecialty of pediatrics with the newborn infant.

Obstretrics -- A medical-surgical specialty concerned with the management and care of women during pregnancy.

Oxygen inhalation therapy -- Inhalation of oxygen aimed at restoring normalcy to the alterations of gas exchange in the cardiopulmonary system. This can be done through the use of a respirator, mask, tent, chamber, or nasal catheter.

Placental barrier -- The placental separation of fetal from maternal blood and blood-borne materials of greater than molecular size.

Poliomyelitis -- An acute infectious disease of humans, particularly children, caused by any of three serotypes of human poliovirus. The infection is usually limited to the gastrointestinal tract and nasopharynx although the central nervous system may also get affected, leading to rapidly progressing paralysis.

Resuscitation -- The restoration to life or consciousness of one apparently dead; it includes such measures as artificial respiration and cardiac massage.

Teratology -- The division of embryology that deals with abnormal development and congenital malformations.