Fibroscan – a non-invasive ultrasound scan that measures the ‘elasticity’ or stiffness of the liver.
Glossary
Selected words and phrases
genotype (or genotypic) – This term has several common uses:
1. a general term for the molecular structure of a living organism or virus.
2. a test that looks at the structure of an organism of virus (ie genotype resistance test looks for changes in the virus structure – called mutations).
3. a category for different types of similar viruses – ie hepatitis C has many subtypes, referred to as genotype-1, genotype-2 etc. HCV genotype is the strongest predictor of response to hepatitis C treatment.
See also phenotype.
randomise – in research, this is a way of decide at random which participants join each group. So neither you or your doctor chose which group you join in a research study. A common example is that the decision would be made similar to tossing a coin.
More information from the i-Base guide to HIV research.
IRIS (immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome) – illnesses that occur when HIV treatment is started when the CD4 count is very low.
IRIS occurs because the immune system quickly becomes stronger and identifies infections that it was previously too weak to fight.
IRIS can occur in 1 in 4 (25%) people who start with a CD4 count under 50 cells/mm3.
Although the symtoms are serious, IRIS can usually be easily managed.
Q12H (or q12H) – an abbreviated term for timing medication doses.
q8H means every 8 hours.This is not the same as three times a day (tid or TD).
q12H means every 12 hours. This is not the same as twice-daily (bid or BD).
q24H means every 24 hours. This is not the same as once-daily (qd or QD).