Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Anonychia is the absence of fingernails and toenails. This can occur at birth (congenital anonychia) as a result of a mutation in a gene known as RSPO4. Acquired anonychia can be related to frostbite, trauma, drug reactions, surgery, or circulatory disturbances.

A problem with word finding. Impaired recall of words with no impairment of comprehension or the capacity to repeat the words. In “The Case of Anna H.” who had anomia, the neurologist/writer Oliver Sacks noted that: “When I showed her some kitchen matches, she recognized them at once, visually, but could not say the word ‘match,’…

A problem with word finding. Impaired recall of words with no impairment of comprehension or the capacity to repeat the words. In “The Case of Anna H.” who had anomia, the neurologist/writer Oliver Sacks noted that: “When I showed her some kitchen matches, she recognized them at once, visually, but could not say the word ‘match,’…

Short neck, low hairline at the nape of the neck and limited movement of the head. Klippel-Feil sequence is due to a defect in the early development of the spinal column in the neck, resulting in fusion of the cervical vertebrae. The condition is named for the French neurologists Maurice Klippel and Andre Feil who in…

A birth defect. A minor congenital anomaly is an unusual anatomic feature such as a short second toe that is of no serious medical or cosmetic consequence. By contrast, a major congenital anomaly is a defect such as a cleft palate that is of serious medical or cosmetic consequence.

Any deviation from normal, out of the ordinary. In medicine, an anomaly is usually something that is abnormal at birth.

Short neck, low hairline at the nape of the neck and limited movement of the head. Klippel-Feil sequence is due to a defect in the early development of the spinal column in the neck, resulting in fusion of the cervical vertebrae. The condition is named for the French neurologists Maurice Klippel and Andre Feil who in…

Angiogenital tract is a term used to refer to both the anus and genital tract. The genital tract encompasses the external and internal sex organs in both men and women. The term anogenital tract is often used in the categorization and/or description of disease processes that can affect both of these anatomic regions. For example,…

A ringlike structure, or any body part that is shaped like a ring. Applied to many small ring-shaped structures. The base of a heart valve that supports the valve’s leaflets is called the annulus. A ring-shaped pancreas that encircles the duodenum is an annular pancreas. “Annulus” is a misspelling of the Latin “anulus” (a little ring), the…

An abnormal ring of pancreas that encircles the duodenum and often causes intestinal obstruction. Nausea and vomiting are the usual symptoms and reflect the intestinal obstruction. Complete obstruction is usually evident in the newborn period. Partial obstruction may not present until later in childhood or adulthood. Diagnostic tests include upper GI series, abdominal CT scan, and endoscopy. The treatment is surgical. Complications include peptic ulcer disease…