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1 Syndromes, illness and disease

Medical usage sometimes distinguishes a disease, which has a known specific cause or causes (called its etiology), from a syndrome, which is a collection of signs or symptoms that occur together. However, many conditions have been identified, yet continue to be referred to as "syndromes". Furthermore, numerous conditions of unknown etiology are referred to as "diseases" in many contexts.

2 Identifying a condition as a disease

Identifying a condition as a disease, rather than simply a variation of human structure or function, could have significant social or economic implications (such as compensation for the victims). For example, recognition of post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as shell shock, were highly politicized processes in the United States, as was repetitive motion injury in Australia.

A condition may be considered a disease in some cultures or eras but not in others. To consider a collection of syndromes a considition is objectively verifiable, but often to consider them a disease is a social value judgement. Oppositional-defiant disorder , attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and, increasingly, obesity are conditions today considered diseases in North America, but rarely recognized a century ago. Conversely, the number of people in the West who consider homosexuality to be a disease has been decreasing.

3 Other uses of the term

In biologyBiology studies the variety of life clockwise from top-left E. coli tree fern, gazelle, Goliath beetle Biology is the science of life. It is concerned with the characteristics and behaviors of organisms, how species and individuals come into existence, an, disease refers to any abnormal condition of an organism that impairs function.

The term "disease" is often used metaphorically for disordered, dysfunctional, or distressing conditions of other things, as in disease of society.

4 See also

• List of childhood diseasesThe term childhood disease is sometimes subjective, and does not refer to an accepted, categorical list. Nearly all the diseases in this list can also be contracted by adults, and, of course, all children can contract diseases not categorized as "childhoo
• List of common diseasesThis is a list of common, well-known or infamous diseases. This is neither complete nor authoritative. This is not intended to be a list of rare diseases, nor is it a list of mental disorders. This list includes both common names and technical names for d
• List of diseases for a huge list of 6000+ diseases, many very rare.

• DiagnosisDiagnosis is the process of identifying a disease by its signs, symptoms and results of various diagnostic procedures. The conclusion reached through that process is also called a diagnosis. Typically, someone with abnormal symptoms will consult a physici
• EpidemicAn epidemic is generally a widespread disease that affects many individuals in a population. An epidemic may be restricted to one locale or may even be global ( pandemic). An outbreak of a disease is defined as being epidemic, however, not by how many mem
• Illness
• Palliative carePalliative care is any form of medical care or treatment that concentrates on reducing the severity of the symptoms of a disease or slows its progress rather than providing a cure. It aims at improving quality of life, and particularly at reducing or elim
• Therapy
• Transmission