Mononucleosis

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A contagious viral infection characterized by fever, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, and fatigue caused by the Epstein-Barr virus or similar agents
2. An illness marked by prolonged tiredness, enlarged lymph glands, fever, and sore throat typically linked to infection with a member of the herpesvirus family
3. A disease presenting with symptoms like persistent exhaustion, throat inflammation, and swollen lymph nodes due to viral infection commonly involving Epstein-Barr virus

Etymology: Mononucleosis is a modern medical coinage built from classical parts. "Mono-" comes from Greek "monos" meaning "single" or "alone," and "nucleus" is the Latin word for a kernel or core, while "-osis" is a Greek-derived suffix used across medicine for a diseased or abnormal condition. Put together, the name describes an abnormal increase in a single type of cell, a reference to the high number of monocytes (a type of white blood cell) seen in blood samples from patients with the disease. The name thus records a laboratory observation rather than a symptom a patient would notice. Doctors who saw the blood counts of sufferers named the condition after that distinctive pattern, which is why a word about fever and a sore throat points instead to cells under the microscope.

Synonyms: glandular fever, mono, infectious mononucleosis