encephalomyocarditis

noun

en·​ceph·​a·​lo·​myo·​car·​di·​tis in-ˌse-fə-lō-ˌmī-ə-kär-ˈdī-təs How to pronounce encephalomyocarditis (audio)
: an acute febrile disease especially of swine and some nonhuman primates caused by a picornavirus (species Encephalomyocarditis virus of the genus Cardiovirus) and marked by degeneration and inflammation of skeletal and cardiac muscle and lesions of the central nervous system

Word History

Etymology

New Latin

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of encephalomyocarditis was in 1947

Dictionary Entries Near encephalomyocarditis

Cite this Entry

“Encephalomyocarditis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/encephalomyocarditis. Accessed 14 Nov. 2024.

Medical Definition

encephalomyocarditis

noun
en·​ceph·​a·​lo·​myo·​car·​di·​tis -ˌmī-ə-kär-ˈdīt-əs How to pronounce encephalomyocarditis (audio)
: an acute febrile virus disease that affects numerous vertebrates including humans but is of serious clinical significance mostly in swine, that is caused by any of several strains of a picornavirus (genus Cardiovirus), and that in swine is characterized especially by degeneration and inflammation of skeletal and cardiac muscle and lesions of the central nervous system
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