disease - malignant

Coronary Artery Disease

malignant - cancerous

mammary ducts - ducts in the breast that carry milk to the lactiferous sinuses and the nipple.

mastitis - a condition that occurs mostly in breastfeeding women, causing a hard spot on the breast that can be sore or uncomfortable. It is caused by infection from bacteria that enters the breast through a break or crack in the skin on the nipple or by a plugged milk duct.

meningitis - infection which causes inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.

menopause - the transition in a woman's life when production of the hormone estrogen in her body falls permanently to very low levels, the ovaries stop producing eggs, and menstrual periods stop for good.

menstruating - The blood flow from the uterus that happens about every 4 weeks in a woman.

milk ducts - see mammary ducts.

milk sinuses - see lactiferous sinuses.

milk-ejection reflex - see let-down reflex.

miscarriage - an unplanned loss of a pregnancy. Also called a spontaneous abortion.

montgomery glands - also called Montgomery's glands or areolar glands. These small glands enlarge during pregnancy and breastfeeding and look somewhat like pimples on the areola. They secrete oils that lubricate the nipple.

multiple sclerosis - also called MS, a disorder of the brain and spinal cord that causes decreased nerve function associated with the formation of scars on the covering of nerve cells. Symptoms range from numbness to paralysis and blindness. A person with MS slowly loses control over his or her body.

mumps - a sudden illness caused by the virus paramyxovirus. It is spread by direct contact as well as by airborne droplets and saliva. Since 1967 the mumps vaccine (MMR, or measles, mumps and rubella) has helped cases decline in the United States. Symptoms include inflamed salivary glands (causing a child to have full cheeks like a chipmunk), inflamed tissues of the central nervous system (brain and spine), and an inflamed pancreas. Mumps in a child who has gone through adolescence tends to affect the ovary and the testes, which can lead to infertility.

nerve(s) - cells in the human body that are the building blocks of the nervous system (the system that records and transmits information chemically and electrically within a person). Nerve cells, or neurons, are made up of a nerve cell body and various extensions from the cell body that receive and transmit impulses from and to other nerves and muscles. Nerve tissue in the breast makes breasts sensitive to touch, allowing the baby's sucking to stimulate the let-down or milk-ejection reflex and milk production.

neural tube defect - A major birth defect caused by abnormal development of the neural tube, or the structure in an embryo which develops into the brain and spinal cord. Neural tube defects are among the most common birth defects that cause infant death and serious disability. The most common neural tube defects are anencephaly, spina bifida, and encephalocele. In anencephaly the skull and most or all of the brain does not develop. Encephalocele is a hernia of part of the brain and of the membranes covering it. Spina bifida is an opening in the column encasing the spinal cord.

nipple - the protruding part of the breast that extends and becomes firmer upon stimulation. In breastfeeding, milk travels from the milk sinuses through the nipple to the baby.

nipple shield - an artificial latex or silicone nipple used over the mother's nipple during nursing.

nurse-midwife - A nurse who has undergone special training and has received certification on birthing (labor and delivery). Nurse-midwifes can perform most of the same tasks as physicians and have emergency physician backup when they deliver a baby.