Medical Dictionary Definitions A-Z List
Medical Dictionary Definitions A - Z - «F»:
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Fear of socializing
Fear of socializing (social
phobia): Excessive fear of embarrassment in social situations that is extremely intrusive and can have debilitating effects on personal and professional relationships. Phobias are
persistent, irrational fears of certain objects or situations. People plagued by phobias r...
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Fear of solitude
Fear of solitude: An abnormal and persistent fear of solitude, of being alone. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety even though they realize that being alone does not threaten their well-being. They may worry about being ignored and unloved, or they may worry about intruders, strange nois...
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Fear of spiders
Fear of spiders: An abnormal
and persistent fear of spiders. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety
even though they realize the risk of encountering a spider and being harmed by
it is small or nonexistent. They may avoid going barefoot and may be especially
alert when taking showers or...
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Fear of the dark
Fear of the dark: Pathological
fear of the dark, an abnormal and persistent dread of the dark. Sufferers experience undue anxiety even though they may rationally realize that the dark does not pose a threat commensurate with their fear.
Fear of the dark is termed "nyctophobia," a word derived from ...
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Fear of the number 13
Fear of the number 13: A morbid fear of the number 13. Also known as triskaidekaphobia. Written reference to the superstitious fear of the number thirteen dates to the late 1800s. Its origin is conjectural (a matter of guesswork). The term triskaidekaphobia first appeared in the early 1900s. It was ...
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Fear of thunder
Fear of thunder: An abnormal and persistent fear of thunder that causes undue anxiety even though sufferers realize that thunder itself poses no threat to them. When outdoors during a thunderstorm, they may suffer excessive anxiety. When indoors, they may hide under beds or desks, behind sofas, or i...
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Fear of thunderstorms
Fear of thunderstorms: An abnormal and persistent fear of thunderstorms. Sufferers experience anxiety even when they realize the risk of harm is very small. Consequently, when indoors they might seek shelter under a bed, in a closet or in a basement. They generally keep a watchful eye on the sky and...
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Fear of travel
Fear of travel: An irrational and unreasonable fear of travel is called agoraphobia.
Agoraphobia is a very complex phobia. It usually manifests as a collection of inter-linked phobias. For example, many agoraphobics fear being left alone (monophobia), dislike being in any situation where they feel...
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Fear of vomiting
Fear of vomiting: An abnormal and persistent fear of vomiting. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety even though they realize their fear is irrational. They usually are especially worried about vomiting in public and embarrassing themselves. Consequently, they often avoid office meetings, ...
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Fear of water
Fear of water: An abnormal
and persistent fear of water. Sufferers of aquaphobia experience anxiety even though they realize the water in an ocean, a river, a lake, a creek or even a bathtub may pose no imminent threat. They generally avoid such activities as boating and swimming. Around the house,...
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Fear of women
Fear of women: An abnormal, irrational and persistent fear of women. Sufferers experience undue anxiety even though they realize they face no threat.
Fear of women is termed "gynephobia," a word derived from the Greek "gyne" (woman) and "phobos" (fear). Alternate spelling: "gynaephobia." The prefix...
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Fear of work
Fear of work: An abnormal and
persistent fear of work. Sufferers of this fear experience undue anxiety about
the workplace environment even though they realize their fear is irrational. Their fear may actually be a combination of fears, such fear of failing at assigned tasks, fear of speaking befo...
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Fear of worms (parasitic)
Fear of worms (parasitic): An abnormal and persistent fear
of being infested with parasitic worms called helminths. The technical
term for this fear is helminthphobia. The eggs of parasitic worms can
contaminate air and water, particularly where hygiene is poor. They
can also contaminate foods s...
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Febrile
Febrile: Feverish. ...
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Febrile herpes
Febrile herpes: A small sore
situated on the face or in the mouth that causes pain, burning, or itching before bursting
and crusting over. The favorite locations are on the lips (the labia), chin or cheeks and in the nostrils. Less frequented sites are the gums or roof of
the mouth (the palate).
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