Leman's Lexicon

Sensory Science: The study of how factors such as taste, smell, texture, and appearance affect how people perceive products. This field has become increasingly important in public health and nutrition.

For example, how can we get children to eat more fruits and vegetables? How do you make asparagus appealing, carrots cool and endives enticing? Bring in the sensory scientists (and the behavioral nutritionists).

Unless a kid thinks nutritious
The same thing as delicious
He will simply glare and hate
What is sitting on his plate

Obesogenic: Something that increases the likelihood that we will become obese. “Obesogenic environments” are settings in which calorie-dense but not very nutritious food is abundant but in which opportunities for physical activity are few.

Nutritionists remind us that
We should try our best to not get fat
That is wise advice and good for one
But more easily said, alas, than done

Edentulousness: The state of being without teeth. Toothlessness. (Pronounced ee-DEN-chu-less-ness)

A lack of teeth combined with difficulties using dentures can lead to avoidance of certain types of food and, therefore, malnutrition.  Edentulousness can also result in a feeling of personal ugliness and can impact a person’s self image and thereby quality of life.

Syndemic: From syn (together) and (epi) demic: The combination of two or more diseases that intensify the overall effect of illness in a population, contextualized by socioeconomic or demographic factors. An example would be the debilitating effects of various combinations of HIV, tuberculosis and/or various types of hepatitis occurring in the context of poverty and/or some form of social stigma or marginalization such as that which often follows illegal intravenous drug use or prostitution.

A syndemic can be an aggregation of diseases and social factors considered as an overarching syndrome or the word can be used to describe a way of examining a public health or community health problem (e.g., syndemic analysis).  In academia, it can be used to refer to a school of thought regarding how to go about studying the biosocial aspects and background of disease (syndemic theory).
 

Xenotransplantation: the transplantation, implantation or infusion into a human recipient of live cells, tissues, or organs from a nonhuman animal source (such as a pig or a non-human primate).

There are ethical concerns about xenotransplantation. And for those for whom ethics are of minor moment, there are more mundane considerations such as the risk of xenogeneic infection (i.e. transmission of a disease from the animal donor to the human who could then in theory or in practical fact transmit the disease to those around him and perhaps create worldwide catastrophe).

Use of animal tissue
In humans can become
Something of an issue
‘Cause of where the stuff is from

Domotics: Home automation and the science, study and technologies thereof. Think “smart homes.” Why does this matter in health care? Because smart home technologies make life easier for the elderly, the disabled and the chronically ill and enable them to live more independent lives than would be possible otherwise.

Examples of domotic devices include such simple things as picture phones that enable adult children of frail, elderly parents to check in with them from afar to the development of brain-computer interfaces that will enable those with limited use of their limbs to control household devices such as thermostats.

Wicked problems:  Problems that are resistant to easy solutions or resolutions satisfactory to all interested parties. Wicked problems can be found in areas as varied as science, ethics and public policy. The solutions to wicked problems tend to be regarded by one group or another as ill-judged or even immoral.

As one example related to health: One faction favors enacting a policy banning sales of large bottles of soft drinks in the name of public health and obesity prevention. Another considers such a policy excessive interference in the lives of others and an unjustifiable curtailment of personal liberty.

Another health example. One side favors fluoridation of the public water supply while the other finds the notion abhorrent. Emotions can run high around wicked problems.

The only way, it seems to me, to ever get things done
Is to proceed apace and accomplish stuff and heed the voice of none

Formulary: A list of drugs an insurance plan covers. Additionally, in hospital settings, formularies list drugs commonly stocked in their pharmacies. Formularies differ from pharmacopoeias in that formularies are not as complete and lack detailed descriptions of the drugs, their formulations, analytic composition, chemical properties, and so on. Also, one is spelled with an F and another with a P for some reason.

Decisions on what medications listed in the formulary are usually decided by committees of providers after weighing considerations of efficacy, safety and cost-effectiveness. Formularies are not without controversy.

Committees meet and then decide
What medications to provide
And periodically review
The benefits they have for you

Nocebo: A nocebo response is a negative reaction to a harmless substance and can be caused by the patient’s own negative psychological reaction to a treatment or by the patient’s reaction to perceived negative attitudes about a treatment by clinical staff. In other words, a nocebo response (negative) to a harmless substance is basically the opposite of a placebo response (positive).

If I get a dummy drug
That strikes me as a yummy drug
I’ll be happy as a clam
And very grateful for the sham
But given one that seems to be
Tainted with adversity
I will groan and feel quite ill
And never take another pill
 

Topology: Anatomical study of specific regions or parts of organisms. Also referred to as Regional Anatomy.

When studying anatomy, it is always good
To get to know the neighborhood
And learn to name the body parts
Toes and tendons, hands and hearts.