waterhouse-friderichsen syndrome

Main Entry: Wa·ter·house–Frid·er·ich·sen syndrome
Pronunciation: 'wot-&r-"haus-'frid-(&-)rik-s&n-
Function: noun
: acute and severe meningococcemia with hemorrhage into the adrenal glands
Waterhouse, Rupert (1873–1958), British physician, and Friderichsen,Carl (b 1886), Danish physician. Waterhouse described in 1911 a syndrome of acute collapse associated with hemorrhages in the adrenal glands, usually observed in severecases of meningitis caused by the meningococcus. Friderichsen published his own independent description of the syndrome in 1918.