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(1) Embolus: Something that travels through the bloodstream, lodges in a blood vessel and blocks it. Examples of emboli are a detached blood clot, a clump of bacteria, and foreign material such as air.

A pulmonary embolus is a blood clot that has been carried through the blood into the pulmonary artery (the main blood vessel from the heart to the lung) or one of its branches, plugging that vessel.

The word “embolus” comes from the Greek “embolos” meaning a wedge or plug. “Embolos” was derived from “en” (in) + “ballein” (to throw) so an embolus is something thrown in.

(2) embolus /em·bo·lus/ (em´bo-lus) pl. em´boli [L.] a mass of clotted blood or other material brought by the blood from one vessel and forced into a smaller one, obstructing the circulation.

fat embolus - one composed of oil or fat.

fibrocartilaginous embolus - Also referred to as fibrocartilaginous embolic myelopathy. 1. any functional disturbance and/or pathological change in the spinal cord; often used to denote nonspecific lesions, as opposed to myelitis. 2. pathological bone marrow changes.myelopath´ic

riding embolus - saddle embolus, straddling embolus one at the bifurcation of an artery, blocking both branches.

saddle embolus - one situated at the bifurcation of a large artery, usually the terminal aorta, blocking both branches. See also saddle thrombus.

glossary/embolus.txt · Last modified: 2012/10/16 14:40 (external edit)