absorption
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Related to absorption: absorption costing, Absorption of Light
absorption
[ab-sorp´shun]1. the act of taking up or in by specific chemical or molecular action; especially the passage of liquids or other substances through a surface of the body into body fluids and tissues, as in the absorption of the end products of digestion into the villi that line the intestine.
2. in psychology, devotion of thought to one object or activity only.
3. in radiology, uptake of energy by matter with which the radiation interacts. It can vary with the mass (density) subjected to x-radiation and the penetrability of the x-rays. A thin lead plate might absorb 100 per cent of an x-ray beam, while several centimeters of tissue might attenuate it only slightly, even at low voltages.
4. in chemistry, the penetration of a substance within the inner structure of another; see also adsorption.
chemical absorption any process by which one substance in liquid or solid form penetrates the surface of another substance.
digestive absorption the passage of the end products of digestion from the gastrointestinal tract into the blood and lymphatic vessels and the cells of tissues. Absorption of this kind can take place either by diffusion or by active transport.
radiation absorption the dissipation of radiant energy as it passes through matter. This phenomenon is of particular importance in diagnostic and therapeutic radiology, which depends on the interaction between ionizing radiations and matter. As radiation passes through matter, it is absorbed by an amount dependent on the atomic and molecular structure and thickness of the substance, and the energy of the primary photons. If radiations pass through a medium of living or nonliving material without absorption (loss of energy), no biologic or photographic effects can occur. In true absorption the photons of radiation waves give up or transfer all of their energy to electrons within the atoms of the matter through which they are passing.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
ab·sorp·tion
(ab-sōrp'shŭn), Do not confuse this word with adsorption.1. The taking in, incorporation, or reception of gases, liquids, light, or heat. Compare: adsorption.
2. In radiology, the uptake of energy from radiation by the tissue or medium through which it passes.
3. Removal of a particular antibody from a mixture on addition of the complementary antigen.
[L. absorptio, fr. absorbeo, to swallow]
Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
absorption
The process of taking in.Chemistry
The drawing of a gas or liquid into the pores of a permeable solid.
EBM
The process by which medications reach the blood stream when administered other than intravenously, for example through nasal membranes.
Histology
The impregnation of a tissue by a dye, to be subsequently examined by light microscopy.
Immunology
A lab technique consisting of either removal of an antibody from serum by adding its cognate antigen, or removal of an antigen by adding its cognate antibody; absorption allows an antiserum to be purified by removing unwanted immunoglobulins, or may be used to seek out an antigen or antibody of interest.
Pharmacology
The process by which a drug enters the body and is available for therapeutic activity; uptake of material across a surface—e.g., epidermis, GI mucosa, renal tubules.
Routes of administration
Oral, IV, rectal, intramuscular, subcutaneous, inhalation, transdermal; agents administered extravascularly are absorbed by passive diffusion of the non-ionised drug fraction.
Physics
The uptake of electromagnetic energy by a medium as a result of electromagnetic waves or particles passing through it.
Physiology
The passage of food, water and nutrients across the gastrointestinal mucosa (beginning at the distal duodenum) during digestion; the movement and uptake of substances (liquids and solutes) into cells or across “barriers” (e.g., skin, GI mucosa, renal tubules, blood vessels) by diffusion or osmosis.
Psychology
Complete focusing of attention on one object or activity.
Social medicine
The assimilation of a person’s cultural identity by another.
Absorption
The process of taking in.Chemistry The drawing of a gas or liquid into the pores of a permeable solid.
Histology Direct staining The impregnation of a tissue by a dye, to be subsequently examined by light microscopy.
Immunology Agglutinin absorption A lab technique consisting of either removal of an antibody from serum by adding its cognate antigen, or removal of an antigen by adding its cognate antibody; absorption allows an antiserum to be purified by removing unwanted immunoglobulins, or may be used to “fish” for an antigen or antibody of interest.
Pharmacology The process by which a drug enters the body and is available for therapeutic activity; uptake of material across a surface—e.g., epidermis, GI mucosa, renal tubules.
Routes of administration Oral, IV, rectal, intramuscular, subcutaneous, inhalation, transdermal; agents administered extravascularly are absorbed by passive diffusion of the nonionised drug fraction.
Physics The uptake of electromagnetic energy by a medium as a result of electromagnetic waves or particles passing through it.
Physiology The passage of food, water and nutrients across the gastrointestinal mucosa—beginning at the distal duodenum—during digestion. The movement and uptake of substances—liquids and solutes—into cells or across “barriers”, e.g. skin, GI mucosa, renal tubules, blood vessels—by diffusion or osmosis.
Psychology Complete focusing of attention on one object or activity.
Social medicine The assimilation of a person’s cultural identity by another.
Segen's Medical Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.
absorption
The process of taking in Immunology Agglutinin absorption A lab technique consisting of either removal of an antibody from serum by adding its cognate antigen, or removal of an antigen by adding its cognate antibody; absorption allows an antiserum to be purified by removing unwanted immunoglobulins, or may be used to 'fish' for an antigen or antibody of interest Medtalk The uptake of material across a surface–eg, epidermis, GI mucosa, renal tubules Pharmacology The process by which a drug enters the body and is available for therapeutic activity; agents administered IV are absorbed completely; agents administered extravascularly are usually absorbed by passive diffusion of the nonionized drug fraction; a drug's concentration in the blood is a function of the ratio of absorption to elimination. See Accumulation.McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
ab·sorp·tion
(ăb-sōrp'shŭn)1. The taking in, incorporation, or reception of gases, liquids, light, or heat.
Compare: adsorption
Compare: adsorption
2. radiology The uptake of energy from radiation by the tissue or medium through which it passes.
3. medical physics The number of disintegrations per second of a radionuclide.
4. radioactivity Unit (SI): becquerel.
5. nutrition Uptake of nutrients and nonnutrients by cells in the gastrointestinal tract.
6. The process by which a compound penetrates an epithelial barrier such as the skin, eyes, respiratory tract, or gastrointestinal tract to reach the interior of the body.
See also: absorbed dose, internal dose
See also: absorbed dose, internal dose
[L. absorptio, fr. absorbeo, to swallow]
Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012
absorption
1. The movement of liquids and of dissolved substances across a membrane, from one compartment of the body to another or into the blood.
2. The assimilation of digested food material into the blood from the small intestine. Compare ADSORPTION. See also DIGESTION.
Collins Dictionary of Medicine © Robert M. Youngson 2004, 2005
absorption
the process by which energy or matter passively or actively enters a system, e.g. the take up of nutrient material from the gut system of animals into the blood stream, or the process by which chlorophyll absorbs light for the process of photosynthesis. Compare ADSORPTION.Collins Dictionary of Biology, 3rd ed. © W. G. Hale, V. A. Saunders, J. P. Margham 2005
Absorption
The transfer of a vitamin from the digestive tract to the bloodstream.
Mentioned in: Vitamin Toxicity
Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
absorption
Transformation of radiant energy into a different form of energy, usually heat, as it passes through a medium. Light that is absorbed is neither transmitted nor reflected. It may, however, be re-emitted as light of another wavelength as, for example, ultraviolet radiation is converted into visible radiation on absorption by a luminescent material. A substance that absorbs all radiations is called a black body. See absorbance; optical density; fluo-rescence.
Millodot: Dictionary of Optometry and Visual Science, 7th edition. © 2009 Butterworth-Heinemann
ab·sorp·tion
(ab-sōrp'shŭn) Do not confuse this word with adsorption.1. The taking in, incorporation, or reception of gases, liquids, light, or heat.
Compare: adsorption
Compare: adsorption
2. In radiology, the uptake of energy from radiation by the tissue or medium through which it passes.
3. Removal of a particular antibody from a mixture on addition of the complementary antigen.
[L. absorptio, fr. absorbeo, to swallow]
Medical Dictionary for the Dental Professions © Farlex 2012