Acting against or preventing the abnormal accumulation of fluid in body tissues (a condition called dropsy or edema).
From anti- (against) + hydropic (relating to excess fluid accumulation). Hydropic comes from Greek hydro- (water). The term emerged in medical terminology in the 18th-19th centuries to describe treatments opposing fluid buildup.
Before modern diuretics, doctors would search for antihydropic substances to treat patients swollen with fluid—and surprisingly, they found some effectiveness with substances like digitalis from foxglove plants, which are still used in heart medicine today.
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