Background
This adjective is part of the definition of several diseases and is, therefore, incorporated in their name, for instance, Severe acute respiratory syndrome, Acute leukemia, Acute myocardial infarction, Acute hepatitis etc.
The term acute may often be confused by the general public to mean 'severe'. This however, is a different characteristic, and something can be acute but not severe. For example, a mild stubbed toe is an acute injury. In adults, many of the Acute Upper Respiratory Infections and Acute Diarrheas are mild and usually resolve within a few days.
Acute hospitals are those intended for short-term medical and/or surgical treatment and care. The related medical speciality is called Acute medicine.
The acute phase of an injury is the period of time in between when the injury is sustained, and the beginning of the sub-acute phase. Depending on the severity of injury, and the age and health of the patient, this phase can take up to four or five days. The acute phase is characterised by some or all of the following: immediate pain, tenderness, swelling, inflammation and oedema, contour deformity, bleeding, and loss of normal function of the injured area.
Read more about this topic: Acute (medicine)
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