| Medical term |
Explanation |
| Ambulatory |
Ambulatory is when the patient can walk and is not bedridden. When referring to medical care it means that it is being provided to patients that are not hospitalised (outpatients) |
| Block randomisation |
A method of randomisation that ensures allocation of participants into roughly equal sizes of comparison groups |
| Clostridium difficile |
A bacterium that causes inflammation of the colon (colitis), typically resulting in diarrhoea, and is strongly associated with the use of antibiotics |
| Comorbidity |
The presence of one or more diseases or conditions other than those of primary interest |
| Contralateral |
On the opposite side of the body (e.g. a repeat episode of leg cellulitis can recur in the same leg [see 'ipsilateral'] or the other, contralateral leg |
| Control event rate (CER) |
The rate at which events of interest (i.e. episodes of cellulitis in our review) occur in the control group of the study |
| Diuretics |
Commonly known as "water pills" these are drugs that help the body to eliminate unneeded water and salt through the urine |
| Epidemiology |
The study of the health of populations and communities, not just particular individuals |
| Erythema |
Redness of the skin caused by increased blood flow. Often a sign of inflammation or infection |
| Filariasis |
A disease caused by infection with worms, usually in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. The worms reside in the lymphatic system of the affected person and interfere with the drainage of the lymph, subsequently causing a significant swelling of the involved limb |
| Filarial lymphoedema |
see Filiariasis |
| Folliculitis |
Inflammation of hair follicles |
| Furunculosis |
Deep form of inflammation of the hair follicles resulting in lumps caused by the accumulation of pus (boils) |
| Gastrointestinal |
Relating to the stomach and the intestines |
| Incidence rate/Incidence rate ratio |
The number of new occurrences of events in a population divided by its time period at risk; Incidence rate ratio is the ratio of two incidence rates |
| Ipsilateral |
On the same side of the body; as opposed to 'contralateral' |
| Mastectomy |
Surgical removal of one or both breasts |
| Outpatient/Inpatient |
Outpatient is a person that is being treated without being hospitalised overnight and visits the physician in the clinic, hospital or other facility; compared with an inpatient who requires an overnight stay in hospital for medical treatment |
| Person‐months |
The sum of the number of months each participant in the trial has been under observation (treated/followed) |
| 'Per protocol'/Intention‐to‐treat (ITT) analyses |
'Per protocol' analysis compares participants in a study based on the treatment they actually took and includes only those patients who completed the treatment originally allocated, as opposed to intention‐to‐treat analysis that compares participants on the basis of their random assignment to groups (treatment or placebo), regardless of adherence to treatment |
| Prophylaxis |
Preventive treatment for disease |
| Retrospective cohort study |
An observational study in which a defined group of people (the cohort) is followed over time. A retrospective cohort study identifies persons from past medical records and follows them from the time of those records to the present |
| Sensitivity analysis |
An analysis used to determine how sensitive the results of a study or systematic review are to changes in how it was done |
| Tinea pedis |
Fungal infection of the foot (athlete's foot) |
| Tonsillectomy |
Surgical removal of tonsils |
