cardiac index

index /in·dex/ (in´deks) pl. indexes, in´dices   [L.]

1. forefinger.

2. a unitless quantity, usually a ratio of two measurable quantities having the same dimensions, or such a ratio multiplied by 100.

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body mass index  (BMI) the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters, used in the assessment of underweight and obesity.

cardiac index  (CI) cardiac output per unit time divided by body surface area.

Colour Index  a publication of the Society of Dyers and Colourists and the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists containing an extensive list of dyes and dye intermediates. Each chemically distinct compound is identified by a specific number, the C.I. number, avoiding the confusion of trivial names used for dyes in the dye industry.

Index Medicus  a monthly publication of the National Library of Medicine in which the world's leading biomedical literature is indexed by author and subject.

mitotic index  the ratio of the number of cells in a population undergoing mitosis to the number not undergoing mitosis.

opsonic index  a measure of opsonic activity determined by the ratio of the number of microorganisms phagocytized by normal leukocytes in the presence of serum from an individual infected by the microorganism, to the number phagocytized in serum from a normal individual.

phagocytic index  the average number of bacteria ingested per leukocyte of the patient's blood.

Quetelet index  body mass i.

refractive index  the refractive power of a medium compared with that of air (assumed to be 1). Symbol n or n.

short increment sensitivity index  (SISI) a hearing test in which randomly spaced, 0.5-second tone bursts are superimposed at 1- to 5-decibel increments in intensity on a carrier tone having the same frequency and an intensity of 20 decibels above the speech recognition threshold.

therapeutic index  originally, the ratio of the maximum tolerated dose to the minimum curative dose; now defined as the ratio of the median lethal dose (LD50) to the median effective dose (ED50). It is used in assessing the safety of a drug.

vital index  the ratio of births to deaths within a given time in a population.

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cardiac index

n.

The volume of blood pumped by the heart in a unit of time divided by the body surface area, usually expressed in liters per minute per square meter.

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cardiac index,

a measure of the cardiac output of a patient per square meter of body surface area. Its normal range in a healthy adult is 2.8 to 4.2 L/min/m².

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index,

n 1. the ratio of a measurable value to another.
2. a core or mold used to record or maintain the relative position of a tooth or teeth to one another or to a cast. See also splint.

index, Broders's (Broders's classification),

n.pr 1. a system of grading of epidermoid carcinoma suggested by Broders. Tumors are graded from I to IV on the basis of cell differentiation. Grade I tumors are highly differentiated, with much keratin production; Grade IV tumors are poorly differentiated; the cells are highly anaplastic, with almost no keratin formation.
n 2. the classification and grading of malignant neoplasms according to the proportion of malignant cells to normal cells in the lesion.

index, cardiac,

n the minute volume of blood per square meter of body surface.

index, carpal,

n the degree of ossification of the carpal bones noted in radiographs of the wrist; a method of determining the state of skeletal maturation.

index, cephalic,

n head shape and size.

Index, Dean's Fluorosis

n.pr the most commonly used system for classifying dental fluorosis. Ratings are assigned based on the most severe fluorosis seen on two or more teeth.

index, DEF (decayed, extracted, filled),

n.pr a dental caries index applied to the primary dentition in somewhat the same manner as the DMF index is used for classifying permanent teeth. Missing primary teeth are ignored in this index because of the uncertainty in determining whether they were extracted because of advanced caries or exfoliated normally.

index, DMF (decayed, missing, filled),

n.pr a technique for managing statistically the number of decayed, missing, or filled teeth in the oral cavity. Analysis may be based on the average number of DMF teeth (sometimes called DMFT) per person or the average number of DMF tooth surfaces (DMFS).

index, facial height,

n the ratio of posterior facial height to anterior facial height.

index, gingiva and bone count (Dunning-Leach index),

n an index that permits differential recording of both gingival and bone conditions to determine gingivitis and bone loss.

index, gingival (GI),

n an assessment tool used to evaluate a case of gingivitis based on visual inspection of the gingivae that takes into consideration the color and firmness of gingival tissue along with the presence of blood during probing.

index, gingival bleeding (GBI),

n an assessment tool used to verify the presence of gingival inflammation based on any bleeding that occurs at the gingival margin during or immediately after flossing.

index, gnathic,

n the relationship of jaw size to head size.

index, icterus,

n See test, Meulengracht's.

index, malocclusion,

n a measure of the severity of a malocclusion, obtained by assigning values to a series of defined observations.

index, measuring,

n an expression of relationship of one measurable value to another, or a formula based on measurable values.

index, missing teeth,

n See index, DMF.

index, oral hygiene, simplified (Greene-Vermillion index),

n an index made up of two components, the debris index and the calculus index, which are based on numerical determination representing the amount of debris or calculus found on six preselected tooth surfaces.

index, periodontal (Ramfjord index),

n a thorough clinical examination of the periodontal status of six teeth, with an evaluation of the gingival condition, pocket depth, calculus and plaque deposits, attrition, mobility, and lack of contact.

index, periodontal disease (Russell index),

n an index that measures the condition of both the gingiva and the bone individually for each tooth and arrives at the average status for periodontal disease in a given oral cavity.

index, plaque,

n an assessment tool used to evaluate the thickness of plaque at the gingival margin that may be applied to selected teeth or to the entire oral cavity.

index, PMA (Schour-Massler index),

n an index used for recording the prevalence and severity of gingivitis in schoolchildren by noting and scoring three areas: the gingival papillae (P), the buccal or labial gingival margin (M), and the attached gingiva (A).

index, Pont's,

n the relation of the width of the four incisors to the width between the first premolars and the width between the first molars.

index, Russell,

n.pr See index, periodontal disease.

index, salivary Lactobacillus

(lak´-tōbsil´s),
n a count of the lactobacilli per milliliter of saliva; used as an indicator of present dental caries activity. The test is of questionable value in individual patients, although its use in large groups has led to valuable information on caries ac-tivity.

index, saturation,

n a number indicating the hemoglobin content of a person's red blood cells as compared with the normal content.

index, sulcus bleeding,

n.pr an assessment tool used to evaluate the existence of gingival bleeding in individual teeth and/or regions of the oral cavity upon gentle probing by assigning a score of 0-5, with 0 indicating a healthy appearance and no bleeding.

index, therapeutic,

n the ratio of toxic dose to effective dose.

index, ventilation,

n the index obtained by dividing the ventilation test by the vital capacity.

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cardiac

1. pertaining to the heart. See also heart.

2. pertaining to the gastric cardia.

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cardiac afterload

the impedance to ventricular emptying presented by aortic pressure.

cardiac area

see precordium.

cardiac biopsy

an uncommon clinical procedure. May be performed via thoracotomy or with a biopsy catheter introduced intravenously.

cardiac catheterization

the insertion of a catheter into a vein or artery and guiding it into the interior of the heart for purposes of measuring cardiac output, determining the oxygen content of blood in the heart chambers, and evaluating the structural components of the heart.

cardiac compensation

in cardiac disease the compensation for the inefficiency of the heart's pump action by enlisting the various reserves of the heart such as hypertrophy, enlargement, increase in rate, so as to maintain circulatory equilibrium and prevent the appearance of signs of congestive heart failure.

cardiac compression

an emergency measure to empty the ventricles of the heart in an effort to circulate the blood, and also to stimulate the heart so that it will resume its pumping action. Involves the application of pressure through the thoracic wall. More commonly used in animals than other forms of cardiac massage.

cardiac conducting cells

specialized cardiac fibers modified to conduct impulses from the A-V node via the septum to the ventricles. Called also Purkinje fibers.

cardiac conducting system

the cardiac tissue responsible for electrical conduction, made up of the sinoatrial node, the atrioventricular node, and the atrioventricular bundle and cardiac conducting fibers.

cardiac depressor nerve

a branch of the vagus nerve composed of afferent nerve fibers which arise around the base of the heart; called also aortic nerve.

cardiac dilatation

the heart volume is increased but the effective mass of cardiac muscle is not. A dilated heart has lost some of its reserve.

cardiac dullness

the area of the chest wall over which a dull sound, indicating the position of the heart, can be elicited by percussion.

cardiac failure

see heart failure.

cardiac fibrillation

see ventricular fibrillation.

cardiac fibrosis

see cardiac cirrhosis.

cardiac flow load

the work required of the heart can be increased by a need for an increased flow rate of blood, e.g. when there is an anastomosis, congenital arteriovenous defect, portosystemic shunt.

cardiac function curves

statistical curves used in modeling the cardiovascular functions, relating e.g. venous return to cardiac output.

cardiac glands

in the cardiac region of the gastric wall; branched, tubular, coiled, mucus-secreting.

cardiac glycosides

the glycosides of Digitalis purpurea (digitoxin, gitalin and gitoxin) and digoxin (from D. lanata). Strophanthin and ouabain are glycosides found in Strophanthus spp. Other cardiac glycosides are present in the skin of toads (Bufo maritimus, B. vulgaris), but are of toxicological rather than therapeutic interest.

cardiac horse sickness

see african horse sickness.

cardiac hypertrophy

enlargement of the heart coincident with an increase in muscle mass; an indication of response to an increase in load which may or may not be associated with disease. It is an expression of cardiac compensation but some of the cardiac reserve has been lost.

cardiac impulse

see cardiac impulse. Called also apex beat.

cardiac index

cardiac output divided by the animal's body surface area in m². The normal range for dogs is 1.8-3.5 l/m².

left-sided cardiac enlargement

may involve either the left ventricle or atrium, or both, and can be demonstrated on radiographs and electrocardiography. Seen most commonly in mitral valvular disease in dogs.

cardiac massage

manual massage of the heart or stimulation with an electrical current through an open thoracic wall. The term is sometimes used interchangeably with cardiac compression.

cardiac mucosa

the most cranial of the gastric mucosae; secretes only mucus, except in pigs, in which the area covered by this mucosa is much larger than in the other species and bicarbonate is also secreted.

cardiac murmur

see heart murmur.

cardiac output

the volume of blood pumped per unit of time. May be calculated by oxygen consumption measurement or determined by dilution of indocyanine green or cold saline, using catheters with thermistors placed intravenously (thermodilution method). It can be estimated clinically by measuring heart rate, pulse quality or pressure, and assessment of tissue perfusion, e.g. capillary refill time.

cardiac pacing

employing cardiac pacemakers to control heart rate.

cardiac preload

ventricular end-diastolic volume.

cardiac pressure load

the stress of working against an elevated blood pressure in the arterial circuit; one of the two major groups of causes of heart disease; the other is flow load.

cardiac racing syndrome

a disease of companion birds manifested by a sudden increase in heart rate, up to 1000/min, in the period immediately after being restrained. Death occurs within a few seconds.

cardiac reserve

the reserve mechanisms in the heart to compensate for defects which could make the heart's pumping action ineffective. The reserve mechanisms include hypertrophy, enlargement, increase in heart rate and an increase in stroke volume, a result of the increase in muscle mass and the enlargement of the ventricles.

right-sided cardiac enlargement

may involve either the right ventricle or atrium. Occurs in heartworm disease in dogs.

cardiac rupture

penetration of the myocardium by a reticular foreign body in cows, or rupture of a patch of chronic fibrotic myocarditis in horses, causes cardiac tamponade and sudden death.

cardiac size

may increase as a result of hypertrophy, dilatation or a combination of the two. A common belief with some scientific support is that performance of horses in sprint races is closely related to heart size.

cardiac stroke volume

the amount of blood ejected with each systole.

cardiac thrill

see thrill.

cardiac valve fenestration

the valve surface is incomplete, creating a lattice effect; mostly congenital defects in foals.

cardiac valve hematocysts

congenital, blood-filled cysts on the atrioventricular valves considered to be of no pathogenic significance.

cardiac valve laceration

tearing of the valve tissue or attachment to myocardium may occur spontaneously or as a sequel to endocarditis; adds a significant additional flow load to the heart.

cardiac valve rupture

see cardiac valve laceration (above).

cardiac valves

heart valves formed by evaginations of the cardiac and vascular endothelium supported by connective tissue; includes atrioventricular and semilunar valves on both sides of the heart.

cardiac valvular disease

see valvular disease.

cardiac vascular shunts

includes patent foramen ovale, ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, patent ductus arteriosus.

cardiac work

includes effective work—that needed for the onward propulsion of blood through the correct channels against arterial pressure, total work—includes all of the work performed by the heart including some involved in moving blood in the wrong direction.

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cardiac index

Cardiology The cardiac output of blood–L/min/m2 surface area Lab medicine The ratio of CK-MB to total CK, an indicator of myocardial ischemia, and ↑ risk for acute MI. See Cardiac profile guideline, CK-MB, Troponin I.