FIBRILLATION

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does fibrillation mean? 

• FIBRILLATION (noun)
  The noun FIBRILLATION has 2 senses:

1. muscular twitching involving individual muscle fibers acting without coordination

2. act or process of forming fibrils

  Familiarity information: FIBRILLATION used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FIBRILLATION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Muscular twitching involving individual muscle fibers acting without coordination

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("fibrillation" is a kind of...):

twitch; twitching; vellication (a sudden muscle spasm; especially one caused by a nervous condition)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fibrillation"):

atrial fibrillation (fibrillation of the muscles of the atria of the heart)

ventricular fibrillation (fibrillation of heart muscles resulting in interference with rhythmic contractions of the ventricles and possibly leading to cardiac arrest)

Derivation:

fibrillate (make fine, irregular, rapid twitching movements)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Act or process of forming fibrils

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("fibrillation" is a kind of...):

branching; fork; forking; ramification (the act of branching out or dividing into branches)

 Context examples 

Ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation whose cause is unknown.

(Idiopathic Primary Ventricular Tachycardia/Ventricular Flutter by ECG Finding, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

An electrocardiographic finding of ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation of unknown cause.

(Idiopathic Primary Ventricular Tachycardia/Ventricular Flutter by ECG Finding, NCI Thesaurus/ACC)

During the monitoring period, which averaged 13.5 years, 3346 new cases of atrial fibrillation were diagnosed.

(Eat Chocolate for Steady Heartbea, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

After a 10-year follow-up, 3 per cent of them had developed atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm) and nearly 5 per cent developed heart failure.

(Frequently brushing teeth may help prevent heart attacks, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

You may also take a blood thinner if you have: • An abnormal heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation • Heart valve surgery • Congenital heart defects

(Blood Thinners, NIH)

Risk factors for excessive blood clotting include: • Certain genetic disorders • Atherosclerosis • Diabetes • Atrial fibrillation • Overweight, obesity, and metabolic syndrome • Some medicines • Smoking

(Blood Clots, NIH)

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of arrhythmia.

(Atrial Fibrillation, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

This drug is used to treat and suppress ventricular arrhythmias, particularly ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia.

(Bretylium Tosylate, NCI Thesaurus)

Dofetilide is used in the treatment of atrial fibrillation and flutter.

(Dofetilide, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by an electrocardiographic finding of episodic atrial fibrillation with abrupt onset and termination.

(Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation, NCI Thesaurus)