- Dyscrasia
Dyscrasia, is a concept from
ancient Greek medicine with the word "dyskrasia", meaning bad mixture. [Aphorism 79 or Organon of Medicine by Dr. Samuel Hahnemann]Ancient use
To the Greeks, it meant an imbalance of the
four humors :blood ,black bile ,yellow bile , and water (phlegm ). These humors were believed to exist in the body, and were the direct cause of alldisease .This is similar to the
Asia n concept ofYin and Yang that an imbalance of the two polarities caused ailment.Modern use
It is still occasionally used in medical context for an unspecified disorder of the blood. Specifically it is defined in current medicine as a morbid general state resulting from the presence of abnormal material in the blood, usually applied to diseases affecting blood cells or platelets. [Stedman's medical dictionary, 6th edition]
Antimetabolitic agent s such asLeucovorin ,Methotrexate , etc. may cause blood dyscrasias.Spironolactone (Potassium sparing diuretic ), when used as a pro-drug to treatConn syndrome may cause this side effect. Antiarrythmic drugs such asTocainide ,Phenytoin , andMexiletine , also causes blood dyscrasis.References
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