aplastische

Aplastische is an adjective used in German medical terminology to describe tissue, organs, or processes that are not formed or have failed to develop properly. The term is derived from the noun Aplasie, which denotes absence or failure of development of a tissue or organ, and from the prefix a- meaning not. Aplasie and its adjectival form aplastisch (and its inflected forms such as aplastische) are used to indicate lack of formation or reduced formation in a given context.

In medical practice, aplastic describes conditions in which cellular formation is diminished or absent. The most well-known example is aplastic anemia, or aplastische Anämie, a disorder in which the bone marrow fails to produce sufficient red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets, leading to pancytopenia and a hypocellular marrow. Aplastic anemia can be idiopathic or caused by factors such as certain drugs, chemicals (for example benzene), radiation, or viral infections. Symptoms often include fatigue, infections, and bleeding tendencies, and treatment may involve supportive care, immunosuppressive therapy, or bone marrow transplantation, with prognosis varying by cause and severity.

Aplasia is also used more generally for congenital or developmental absence of an organ or tissue, such as tooth agenesis or aplasia cutis congenita (absence of skin at birth). In these contexts, aplastic denotes a failure of normal development rather than a failure arising from injury later in life.

Overall, aplastische functions as a descriptor for insufficient or absent formation, most commonly encountered in hematology but applicable to other organ systems as well.