Absent i a

epileptic a (ab-sen' '-she-ah ep-il-ep' -tik-ak). Brief lo es of consciousne occurring in the mild form of epilepsy. physiology, to suck up or imbibe, as the imbibition performed by the lacteals in the body. Absorbent (ab-sor'-bent). In physiology, an organ or part that to absorbs", withdraws, or takes up. A term applied the Lacteals and Lymphatics, q. v. In materia medic a, a drug or medicine that produces absorption or exudation of diseased ti ue. In surgery, a substance that mechanically takes up excreted matter, as A. Cotton, A. Sponge, etc. A. Glands. See Lymphatics . A. System, the lacteals and lymphatics, with their a ociated glands. Absorptiometer (ab-sorp-te-om'-et-er). A device for measuring the thickne of the layer of liquid that is taken up between two gla plates by capillary attraction. Used in conjunction with a spectrophotometer, it serves as a hem a to scope. Absorption (ab-sorp/ -shun). The permeation or imbibition of one body by another. The proce whereby nourishment, medicines, morbid products of ti ue metamorphosis, etc., are taken up by the lymphatic and venous systems. In ophthalmology the proce by which the lens is disintegrated and carried off after the capsule has been ruptured. A. Lines or Bands, the lines of the spectrum, called Fraunhofers lines; they are dark lines caused by the arrestation or absorption of the ethereal waves of certain lengths and rapidities, mainly by vapors of the sun's atmosphere. A. of Composition, or External Absorption, the taking up of material by the skin or mucous surfaces. A., Cutaneous, absorption by the skin. A., Disjunctive, the removal of living ti ue around a necrosed ma , and its consequent separation from its surroundings. A., Interstitial, the removal by the absorbent system of effete matters. A. Method, to determine whether or not hematuria is due to lesion of the bladder. It is based on the fact that the undenuded surface of the bladder will not absorb foreign substances. Fifteen grains of pota ium iodid are injected into the bladder, and fifteen minutes later the saliva is examined for iodin. If found, it is an indication of an unhealthy state of the bladder. A., Progre ive, atrophy of a part due to pre ure. A., Pulmonary, the taking up of oxygen, or of vapors (as of ether), by the lungs. A., Venous, absorption by the veins.