A syndrome is a set of medical signs and symptoms which are correlated with each other and often associated with a particular disease or disorder.
Teratology (dysmorphology) by its nature involves the defining of congenital syndromes that may include birth defects (pathoanatomy), dysmetabolism (pathophysiology), and neurodevelopmental disorders.
In medicine, a broad definition of syndrome is used, which describes a collection of symptoms and findings without necessarily tying them to a single identifiable pathogenesis.
For example, Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine (1025) describes diagnosing pleurisy by its symptoms, including chronic fever, cough, shooting pains, and labored breathing.
[7] The 17th century doctor Thomas Sydenham likewise approached diagnoses based upon collections of symptoms.
[citation needed] The most important psychopathological syndromes were classified into three groups ranked in order of severity by German psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin (1856—1926).
The first group, which includes the mild disorders, consists of five syndromes: emotional, paranoid, hysterical, delirious, and impulsive.
In the past, syndromes were often named after the physician or scientist who identified and described the condition in an initial publication.
In some cases, diseases are named after the patient who initially presents with symptoms,[17] or their home town (Stockholm syndrome).
North American usage has tended to favor the non-possessive form, while European references often use the possessive.
[citation needed] Signs and symptomsSyndromeDisease Medical diagnosisDifferential diagnosisPrognosis AcuteChronicCure Eponymous diseaseAcronym or abbreviationRemission