addison's disease

2 definitions found

addison's disease - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Addison's disease \Ad"di*son's dis*ease"\ [Named from Thomas
     Addison, M. D., of London, who first described it.] (Med.)
     A morbid condition causing a peculiar brownish discoloration
     of the skin, hypotension, and loss of weight; it is due to
     insufficient secretion of adrenocortical hormones. Untreated
     disease is usually fatal. Called also chronic adrenocortical insufficiency
     
     [1913 Webster + AS]

addison's disease - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  Addison's disease
      n 1: a glandular disorder caused by failure of function of the
           cortex of the adrenal gland and marked by anemia and
           prostration with brownish skin [syn: Addison's disease,
           Addison's syndrome, hypoadrenalism,
           hypoadrenocorticism]