Definition

Noun: - Landry's paralysis: A specific medical condition classified as a form of peripheral polyneuritis. It is characterized by symptoms including pain, weakness, and in some cases, paralysis of the limbs. The cause of this condition is unknown.

Usage Notes

• This term is a highly specialized medical term, primarily used in clinical, neurological, and historical medical contexts. It is not used in everyday conversation.
• It is a proper noun, often capitalized ("Landry's paralysis"), referring to the condition first described by the French physician Jean Baptiste Octave Landry.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The patient was admitted with symptoms consistent with Landry's paralysis.
  • Historical medical texts often discuss Landry's paralysis as a distinct syndrome.

Advanced Usage

• The term is sometimes used interchangeably with "acute ascending paralysis" or "Landry's syndrome" in medical literature to describe a rapid, progressive paralysis starting in the legs and ascending upward.

Variants and Related Words

• Landry's syndrome (n): A synonymous term for the same condition.
• Acute ascending paralysis (n): A descriptive term for the symptom progression seen in this condition.
• Guillain-Barré syndrome (n): A related but more modern and specific diagnostic term; Landry's paralysis is now often considered a historical description for severe cases of what is now classified as Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Synonyms

• Acute ascending paralysis
• Landry's syndrome
• (Historically) Acute febrile polyneuritis

Important Note

• In contemporary medicine, "Landry's paralysis" is largely a historical term. Most cases previously described as Landry's paralysis would now be diagnosed under the more specific umbrella of Guillain-Barré syndrome or other acute inflammatory neuropathies.

Noun

1. a form of peripheral polyneuritis characterized by pain and weakness and sometimes paralysis of the limbs; cause is unknown