A medical condition involving the discharge or draining of matter from a sore or infected area, particularly in older medical terminology.
From Greek apo- (away) + taxis (arrangement, order), literally meaning 'a flowing away.' This term was used in ancient and medieval medicine to describe purulent drainage or the healing process of wounds.
Medieval physicians used apostaxis to describe what we'd now call drainage from an abscess or wound—they believed in 'laudable pus' (pus that meant healing was happening), so apostaxis was actually considered a good sign that the body was cleaning itself out.
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