Definition of Bariatrics
Bariatrics: The field of medicine that offers treatment for the person who is overweight with a comprehensive program including diet and nutrition, exercise, behavior modification, lifestyle changes and, when indicated, the prescription of appetite suppressants and other appropriate medications. Bariatrics also includes research into overweight, its causes, prevention, and treatment.
The word bariatrics was derived in the 20th century from the Greek baros (weight) + -iatrics (medical treatment). Other words derived from the same Greek root include barium and barometer.

Definition of Index, Body Mass (BMI)
Index, body mass (BMI): An index that relates body weight to height. The body mass index (BMI) is obtained by dividing a person's weight in kilograms (kg) by their height in meters (m) squared.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) now defines normal weight, overweight, and obesity according to the BMI rather than the traditional height/weight charts. Since the BMI describes the body weight relative to height, it correlates strongly (in adults) with the total body fat content.
Overweight is a BMI of 27.3 % or more for women and 27.8 % or more for men, according to the NIH.
Obesity is a BMI of 30 and above, according to the NIH. A BMI of 30 is about 30 pounds overweight. Some very muscular people may have a high BMI without undue health risks.

Definition of Disc
Disc: Shortened terminology for an intervertebral disc, a disk-shaped piece of specialized tissue that separates the bones of the spinal column.
The center of a disc, called the nucleus, is soft, springy and receives the shock of standing, walking, running, etc. The outer ring of the disc, called the annulus (Latin for ring), provides structure and strength to the disc. The annulus consists of a complex series of interwoven layers of fibrous tissue that hold the nucleus in place.
A disc can herniate. A herniated disc is often referred to as a slipped disc. This term came from the action of the nuclear tissue when it is forced from the center of the disc. The nuclear tissue located in the center of the disc can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to rupture.
When the disc has herniated or ruptured, it may create pressure against one or more of the spinal nerves, which can cause pain, weakness or numbness.
The terms slipped disc, herniated disc, prolapsed disc, and ruptured disc are synonymous.

Definition of Herniated Disc
Herniated disc: Rupturing of the tissue that separates the vertebral bones of the spinal column.
The center of the disc, which is called the nucleus, is soft, springy and receives the shock of standing, walking, running, etc. The outer ring of the disc, which is called the annulus (Latin for ring), provides structure and strength to the disc. The annulus consists of a complex series of interwoven layers of fibrous tissue that hold the nucleus in place.
A herniated disc is often referred to as a slipped disc. This term came from the action of the nuclear tissue when it is forced from the center of the disc. The nuclear tissue located in the center of the disc can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to rupture.
When the disc has herniated or ruptured, it may create pressure against one or more of the spinal nerves, which can cause pain, weakness or numbness in the neck and arm. Other names for herniated discs are prolapsed and ruptured discs.

Definition of Cervical Disc
Cervical disc: A disk shaped piece of specialized tissue that separates the vertebral bones of the spinal column in the neck.
The center of the disc, which is called the nucleus, is soft, springy and receives the shock of standing, walking, running, etc. The outer ring of the disc, which is called the annulus (Latin for ring), provides structure and strength to the disc. The annulus consists of a complex series of interwoven layers of fibrous tissue that hold the nucleus in place.
A cervical disc can herniate. A herniated disc is often referred to as a slipped disc. This term came from the action of the nuclear tissue when it is forced from the center of the disc. The nuclear tissue located in the center of the disc can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to rupture.
When the disc has herniated or ruptured, it may create pressure against one or more of the spinal nerves, which can cause pain, weakness or numbness in the neck and arm. Other names for herniated discs are prolapsed and ruptured discs.

Definition of Ergonomics
Ergonomics: The science of making things fit people instead of asking people to fit things. Ergonomics uses knowledge from anatomy, mechanics, physiology and psychology to utilize human energy most effectively. Something that is ergonomic is designed for safe, comfortable, and efficient use. For example, a computer keyboard with an ergonomic design is designed to help the user avoid carpal tunnel syndrome and wrist pain.
The word "ergonomics" was coined in 1949 by the British scientist K.F.H. Murrell who put it together from the Greek "ergon" (meaning "work") and "nomos" (meaning "law").

Definition of Fractured Hip
Fractured hip: Broken bone in the hip, a key health problem among the elderly, usually due to a fall or other kind of trauma involving direct impact to the hip bone which has been weakened by osteoporosis. The part of the hip most often broken is the greater trochanter of the femur.
In older people the leading risk factors for falls and, hence, for hip fractures include weakness; gait and balance disorders; functional, visual or cognitive impairment; and the side effects of drugs; together with the presence of hazards in the environment such as icy pavements or objects on the floor.
More than 300,000 people 65 years old or older are hospitalized yearly because of hip fractures in the US. About a quarter survive for less than a year because of the fracture or its complications and most of those who survive have substantial reductions in in their ability to walk and their ability to function in daily life.
Definition of Physiology
Physiology: The study of how living organisms function including such processes as nutrition, movement, and reproduction.
The word "function" is important to the definition of physiology because physiology traditionally had to do with the function of living things while anatomy had to do with morphology, the shape and form, of things.
Human physiology today is a science of wide scope:
Some physiological studies are concerned with processes that go on within cells such as phagocytosis, the process by which cells engulf and usually digest particles, bacteria and other microorganisms, and even harmful cells. The physiology of cells is called cell physiology.
Other physiological studies deal with how tissues and organs work, how they are controlled and interact with other tissues and organs and how they are integrated within the individual.
Yet other physiological studies deal with how we respond to our environment. For example, to extremes of temperature (in arctic conditions versus the desert), to changes in pressure (deep under the ocean versus weightless in space), etc.
Human physiological processes are the functions of living persons and their parts, and the physical and chemical factors and processes involved.
In 1901 when the Nobel Prizes were established, one was the "Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine". Ivan Pavlov (Russia, psychology, and physiology, 1904), Frederick Banting and John Macleod (Canada, discovery of insulin, 1923), Hermann J. Muller (U.S., mutations by radiation, 1946), Francis Crick, James Watson & Maurice Wilkins (U.K. & U.S., the DNA double helix, 1962), Barbara McClintock (U.S., jumping genes, 1983) and Joseph Murray & Donnall Thomas (U.S., kidney & bone marrow transplantation, 1990) have been among the many celebrated recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.