Inflammation
/ˌɪnfləˈmeɪʃən/
nounB2
Definition
Inflammation is what happens when your body tries to protect itself after being hurt or infected. It usually causes the area to become red, warm, swollen, and sometimes painful. This process helps the body heal but can sometimes cause discomfort.
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See It in Action
Biological response to injury or infection
- •The doctor said the inflammation around the cut means it is healing.
- •Inflammation causes the skin to become red and warm.
- •Chronic inflammation can lead to health problems if it lasts too long.
Medical condition or symptom
- •She took medicine to reduce the inflammation in her joints.
- •Inflammation of the throat can make it painful to swallow.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "inflammation" like "redness" or "swelling," but it is the full process your body uses to fight injury or infection.
- ✓Picture a small cut on your finger that becomes red and puffy as your body works to heal it.
- ✓It's the feeling when your skin is sore and hot after a mosquito bite or a sprain.
- ✓Sounds like "in-FLAME-ation" → imagine a small fire inside your body signaling a problem that needs fixing.
- ✓Think of stories where a hero’s wound gets hot and swollen before it heals, showing the body fighting back.
- ✓NOT like "bruise" (a mark from injury with color change but no active heat or swelling), inflammation is an active process with heat and swelling.
- ✓NOT like "infection" (which is caused by bacteria or viruses), inflammation is the body's response to infection or injury.
- ✓NOT like "pain" alone, inflammation includes pain but also redness, heat, and swelling as signs.
Try Other Words
- •Irritation: mild discomfort or redness (Use when the reaction is less serious or less swollen)
- •Infection: invasion by germs causing illness (Use when the cause is germs, not just the body's response)
- •Redness: the color change in skin (Use when focusing only on the color, not the full reaction)
- •Pain: unpleasant feeling (Use when focusing on the feeling, not the visible signs)
Unboxing
- •Word parts: prefix "in-" (in, into) + root "flame" (fire) + suffix "-ation" (process or action)
- •Etymology: From Latin "inflammatio," meaning "setting on fire"
- •Historical development: Originally used to describe the fiery feeling or appearance of injured tissue
- •Modern usage: Used medically to describe the body's protective response to injury or infection, often accompanied by redness, heat, swelling, and pain
Reflect & Connect
•How do you think inflammation helps the body heal, and when can it become a problem?
•Can you think of examples where inflammation is helpful and where it might cause trouble?
Fill in the blanks
1.Inflammation usually happens ___ the body detects injury or infection and tries to ___ it.
2.When you have inflammation, the affected area often looks red and feels ___ because of increased blood flow.
3.Unlike simple swelling, inflammation also causes ___ and sometimes pain.
4.People often take medicine to ___ inflammation when it causes too much pain or lasts too long.
5.Inflammation is NOT the same as infection, but it often happens ___ an infection is present.
6.The doctor checked the patient’s inflammation to see if the body was ___ the injury properly.
7.Chronic inflammation can ___ health problems if the body stays in this state too long.