Of or pertaining to the mediastinum.
- m. abscess — an abscess that causes systemic signs of toxemia and fever but also severe pain with each inspiration, causing grunting as in pleurisy but without the auscultatory findings of pleurisy.
- m. cyst — remnants of branchial pouches may be found in the anterior mediastinum, particularly in brachycephalic dogs; bronchogenic cysts are found in the posterior mediastinum.
- m. emphysema — see pneumomediastinum.
- m. flutter — movement of the tissues and organs of the mediastinum back and forth with each movement of air in and out of an open sucking wound in the thoracic cavity. The condition can produce serious impairment of cardiopulmonary function and is fatal if not treated promptly. Signs are similar to those of mediastinal shift (see below).
- m. lymph node enlargement — a condition due to abscess formation or neoplastic growth which may cause obstruction to the esophagus and dysphagia, or to the bronchi, causing inspiratory dyspnea. If it is in the anterior chest and of considerable size, it may mimic congestive heart failure, with jugular vein engorgement and edema of the brisket.
- m. neoplasm — characterized by progressive weight loss, reduced exercise tolerance, dyspnea, hydrothorax, areas of dullness on auscultation or percussion over lungs, neoplastic cells in pleural fluid if lesion intrudes into pleural cavity.
- m. shift — a shifting or moving of the tissues and organs that comprise the mediastinum (heart, great vessels, trachea and esophagus) to one side of the chest cavity. The condition occurs when a severe injury to the chest causes the entrapment of air in the pleural space (tension pneumothorax). As the volume of air increases on the affected side, the lung collapses and the organs and tissues of the mediastinum are crowded to the opposite side of the chest. This can produce compression of the other lung and kinking or twisting of one or more of the great blood vessels, which in turn seriously impairs blood flow to and from the heart.
- m. testis — a partial septum of the testis that contains the rete testis.
