Utilizing over 2300 full-colour illustrations to enhance the definitions of a variety of medical terms, especially those pertaining to anatomy, equipment and skin and eye disorders. Arranged alphabetically, the dictionary also features comprehensive definitions for key entries such as major diseases, disorders and procedures. There are also detailed drug entries and a variety of practical reference information included in the appendices. This edition adds approximately 5000 new definitions, to represent most areas of nursing, medicine and allied health, with special emphasis on definitions related to AIDS (new drugs and treatments) and changing developments in health care delivery. Existing entries have been revised to include current information and obsolete definitions have been deleted. All the entries concerning nursing diagnoses have been updated to reflect changes in terminology incorporated at the Twelfth National Conference in 1996, and subheadings have been added for defining characteristics and related factors. The dictionary includes definitions for NIC (Nursing Interventions Classifications) and entries for major nursing theorists and theories, in order to reflect the evolution of terminology related to nursing theory.