tracer

tracer /trac·er/ (trās´er)

1. a dissecting instrument for isolating vessels and nerves.

2. a mechanical device for graphically recording the outline of an object or the direction and extent of movement of a part.

3. a means or agent by which certain substances or structures can be identified or followed.

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radioactive tracer  a radioactive isotope replacing a stable chemical element in a compound and so able to be followed or tracked through one or more reactions or systems; generally one that is introduced into and followed through the body.

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trac·er (trsr)

n.

1. A substance, such as a dye or a radioactive isotope, that is introduced into and followed through a biological or chemical process, by virtue of its radioactive signature, color, or other distinguishing physical property, thus providing information on the course of the process or on the components or events involved.

2. An instrument used in dissecting nerves and blood vessels.

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tracer

Etymology: L, trahere, to draw

1 a radioactive isotope that is used in diagnostic x-ray techniques to allow a biologic process to be seen. After introduction into the body, the tracer binds with a specific substance and is followed with a scanner or fluoroscope as it passes through various organs or systems. Kinds of tracers include radioactive iodine and radioactive carbon. See also radioisotope scan.

2 a mechanical device that graphically records the outline or movements of an object or part of the body.

3 a dissecting instrument that is used to isolate vessels and nerves. trace, v.

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tracer,

n 1. a mechanical device used to trace a pattern of mandibular movements.
2. a foreign substance mixed with or attached to a given substance to enable the distribution or location of the latter to be determined subsequently. A radioactive tracer is a physical or chemical tracer having radioactivity as its distinctive property.

tracer, Gothic arch,

n See tracer, needle point.

tracer, needle point,

n a mechanical device consisting of a weighted or a spring-loaded needle that is attached to one jaw and a coated plate attached to the other jaw. Movement of the mandible causes a tracing to be formed on the horizontally placed plate. When the needle point is in the apex of the tracing, the mandible is said to be in the horizontal position of centric relation.

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tracer

a means by which something may be followed, as (1) a mechanical device by which the outline or movements of an object can be graphically recorded, or (2) a material by which the progress of a compound through the body may be observed.

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radioactive tracer

a radioactive isotope replacing a stable chemical element in a compound introduced into the body, enabling its metabolism, distribution and elimination to be followed in the living animal.

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tracer

Imaging A substance, such as a radioisotope, used in imaging procedures