What it means
Acute inflammation is a quick, short response to injury or infection. Chronic inflammation is slower and lower-level, and it keeps going when the cause stays or the immune system keeps attacking. Over time it damages tissue and causes scarring. It is part of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and atherosclerosis.
At a glance
| Spanish | inflamación crónica |
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Related terms
rheumatoid arthritis
A long-term autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the lining of the joints.
inflammatory bowel disease
A group of long-term diseases, mainly Crohn disease and ulcerative colitis, in which the lining of the digestive tract becomes inflamed.
inflammation
The body's protective response to injury or infection, with redness, heat, swelling, pain and sometimes loss of function.