Haemoptysis

/hɪˈmɑːptɪsɪs/ noun

Definition

The medical condition of coughing up blood, usually from the lungs or respiratory tract.

Etymology

From Greek haima (blood) + ptysis (spitting). Ancient physicians used this term to describe a symptom they observed in tuberculosis and other lung diseases.

Kelly Says

Haemoptysis was one of the first obvious signs of tuberculosis in history—when young people started coughing up blood, their families knew they had the 'white plague' that would likely kill them within months.

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