growth rate

rate (rāt) the speed or frequency with which an event or circumstance occurs per unit of time, population, or other standard of comparison.

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basal metabolic rate  an expression of the rate at which oxygen is used by body cells, or the calculated equivalent heat production by the body, in a fasting subject at complete rest. Abbreviated BMR.

birth rate  the number of births in a specified area during a defined period for the total population, often further qualified as to which portion of the population is being examined.

case fatality rate  the ratio of the number of deaths caused by a specified disease to the number of diagnosed cases of that disease.

circulation rate  the amount of blood pumped through the body by the heart per unit time.

death rate  an expression of the number of deaths in a population at risk during one year. The crude death r. is the ratio of the number of deaths to the total population of an area; the age-specific death r. is the ratio of the number of deaths in a specific age group to the number of persons in that age group; the cause-specific death r. is the ratio of the number of deaths due to a specified cause to the total population.

dose rate  the amount of any agent administered per unit of time.

erythrocyte sedimentation rate  (ESR) the rate at which erythrocytes sediment from a well-mixed specimen of venous blood, as measured by the distance that the top of a column of erythrocytes falls in a specified time interval under specified conditions.

fatality rate  case fatality r.

fertility rate  a measure of fertility in a specified population over a specified period of time, particularly the general fertility r., the number of live births in a geographic area in a year per 1000 women of childbearing age.

fetal death rate  the ratio of the number of fetal deaths in one year to the total number of both live births and fetal deaths in that year.

five-year survival rate  an expression of the number of survivors with no trace of disease five years after each has been diagnosed or treated for the same disease.

glomerular filtration rate  (GFR) an expression of the quantity of glomerular filtrate formed each minute in the nephrons of both kidneys, usually measured by the rate of clearance of creatinine.

growth rate  an expression of the increase in size of an organic object per unit of time.

heart rate  the number of contractions of the cardiac ventricles per unit of time.

incidence rate  the probability of developing a particular disease during a given period of time; the numerator is the number of new cases during the specified time period and the denominator is the population at risk during the period.

morbidity rate  an inexact term that can mean either the incidence rate or the prevalence rate.

mortality rate  death r.

prevalence rate  the number of people in a population who have a disease at a given time: the numerator is the number of existing cases of disease at a specified time and the denominator is the total population.

pulse rate  the number of pulsations noted in a peripheral artery per unit of time.

respiration rate  the number of movements of the chest wall per unit of time, indicative of inhalation and exhalation.

sedimentation rate  the rate at which a sediment is deposited in a given volume of solution, especially when subjected to the action of a centrifuge.

stillbirth rate  fetal death r.

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growth rate

n.

Absolute or relative growth increase, expressed in units of time.

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growth

1. the progressive increase in size of a living thing, especially the process by which the body reaches its point of complete physical development.

2. an abnormal formation of tissue, such as a tumor.

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growth arrest line

a radiologically detectable line parallel to the growth plate in the metaphysis that indicates a temporary cessation of bone growth.

growth check

an event or state, usually the result of inadequate nutrition, parasitism or other disease, which temporarily reduces or stops growth in a young animal. Often followed by a period of compensatory growth.

compensatory growth

increased growth rate during a time period as a result of lower than normal growth rate during a previous period.

growth cone

bulbous enlargement at the tip of every growing axonal fiber in the fetus, from which many long filapodia extend.

growth curve

the curve obtained by plotting increase in size or numbers against the elapsed time.

growth disorders

are sometimes traceable to excess or shortage of pituitary secretions, and may arise from hereditary defects or from glandular abnormalities. Abnormally large secretions of growth hormone can produce gigantism. Failure of the pituitary gland to develop sufficiently or to secrete adequate amounts of growth hormone may result in dwarfism. In adulthood, overproduction of growth hormone may lead to acromegaly.

growth factor

substances which act as local regulators of cell division and function; classified as autocrine (act on cells of the same class) or paracrine (act on cells of a different class).

hematopoietic growth factors

see colony-stimulating factors.

one-step growth curve

a plot typical of the rapid growth of a virus in cell culture when all cells are infected simultaneously.

growth plate

the epiphyseal cartilage at which new bone formation occurs to lengthen long bones during their growth phase. Called also physis. See also epiphyseal plate.

growth promotants

includes all agents used to increase the rate of body weight gain. Used principally in food animals but also in horses with a view to increasing muscle mass and physical performance, and in any species to hasten recuperation in animals debilitated by illness. Pharmaceutical preparations are principally anabolic steroids. Husbandry procedures include estrogen and zearalenone implants and dietary supplementation with antibiotics, monensin and, in the case of pigs, copper.

growth rate

rate of increase in body weight per unit of time, e.g. lb/day in beef cattle.

recombinant growth factor

recombinant growth hormone.

growth retardation

stature smaller than normal; called also runt.

growth retardation lattice

radiodense metaphyseal lines parallel to the epiphyseal plate developing in fetal bone.

transforming growth factor [beta]

a family of extracellular signaling molecules important in the transformation of cells and in growth and development.

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rate

the frequency with which an event or circumstance occurs per unit of time.

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attack rate

the proportion of a population affected by a specific condition during a prescribed, usually short, period of time.

attribute-specific rate

the rate of occurrence of a specific attribute.

basal metabolic rate (BMR)

an expression of the rate at which oxygen is utilized in a fasting subject at complete rest as a percentage of a value established as normal for such a subject.

birth rate

the number of births during one year for the total population (crude birth rate), for the female population (refined birth rate), or for the female population of reproductive age (true birth rate).

case rate

morbidity rate.

case fatality rate

the number of deaths due to a specific disease as compared with the total number of cases of the disease.

cohort rate

the rate of occurrence of e.g. disease in cohorts.

death rate

the number of deaths per stated number of animals (1000 or 10,000 or 100,000) in a certain region in a certain time period.

erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)

see erythrocyte sedimentation rate.

fatality rate

the number of deaths caused by a specific circumstance or disease, expressed as the absolute or relative number among individuals encountering the circumstance or having the disease.

five-year survival rate

an expression of the number of survivors with no trace of disease 5 years after each has been diagnosed or treated for the same disease.

forced expiratory flow rate (FEF)

see maximal expiratory flow rate (below).

glomerular filtration rate

an expression of the quantity of glomerular filtrate formed each minute in the nephrons of both kidneys, calculated by measuring the clearance of specific substances, e.g. inulin or creatinine.

growth rate

an expression of the increase in size of an organic object per unit of time.

heart rate

the number of contractions of the cardiac ventricles per unit of time.

incidence rate

describes the probability of a new case occurring during a stated time interval.

infection rate

percentage of the population from which a specific infectious pathogen is isolated.

rate-limiting enzymes

rate controlling enzymic steps in metabolic pathways. Often allosteric enzymes with allosteric effector sites but can be controlled through substrate availability, product removal or enzyme concentration.

maximal expiratory flow rate (MEFR)

the slope of the line connecting the points 200 ml and 1200 ml on the forced expiratory volume curve. See also pulmonary function tests. Called also FEF_200-1200.

metabolic rate

an expression of the amount of oxygen consumed by the body cells.

morbidity rate

the number of cases of a given disease occurring in a specified period per unit of population.

mortality rate

death rate; the mortality rate of a disease is the ratio of the number of deaths from a given disease to the total number of cases of that disease.

reactor rate

percentage of reactors in a tested population.

respiration rate

the number of movements of the chest wall per unit of time, indicative of inspiration and expiration.

response rate

see response.

risk rate

see relative risk.

sedimentation rate

the rate at which a sediment is deposited in a given volume of solution, especially when subjected to the action of a centrifuge. See also sedimentation rate.

specific rate

expresses the frequency of a characteristic per unit of the population.

rate standardization

adaptation of a rate so that the conditions under which it occurred are comparable with those in which other rates have been estimated. There are several methods, e.g. the equivalent average death rate.