stokes-adams syndrome

Stokes-Ad·ams syndrome   (stōks'ād'əmz)    n.  An occasional temporary stoppage or extreme slowing of the pulse as a result of heart block, causing dizziness, fainting, and sometimes convulsions. [After William Stokes (1804-1878) and Robert Adams (1791-1875), Irish physicians.]

Main Entry: Stokes–Ad·ams syndrome
Pronunciation: "stOks-'ad-&mz-
Function: noun
: fainting and convulsions induced by complete heart blockwith a pulse rate of 40 beats per minute or less called also Adams-Stokes attack, Adams-Stokes disease, Adams-Stokes syndrome, Stokes-Adams attack, Stokes-Adamsdisease
W. Stokes —see CHEYNE-STOKES RESPIRATION
Adams, Robert(1791–1875), British physician. Adams enjoyed a high reputation as a surgeon and specialist in pathological anatomy. He practiced medicine at several Dublin hospitals. His most importantscientific contributions were made in cardiology and the autopsies of patients suffering from various cardiac disorders. He associated cerebral symptoms and slowing of the pulse with cardiac disease.This phenomenon had been noted earlier by Morgagni and would be confirmed later by William Stokes. Adams published his monograph on diseases of the heart in 1827.

Stokes-Adams syndrome n.
See Adams-Stokes syndrome.