sweat gland
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Related to Sudoriferous glands: Ceruminous glands
gland
[gland]an aggregation of cells specialized to secrete or excrete materials not related to their ordinary metabolic needs. Glands are divided into two main groups, endocrine and exocrine. adj., adj glan´dular.
The endocrine glands, or ductless glands, discharge their secretions (hormones) directly into the blood; they include the adrenal, pituitary, thyroid, and parathyroid glands, the islands of Langerhans in the pancreas, the gonads, the thymus, and the pineal body. The exocrine glands discharge through ducts opening on an external or internal surface of the body; they include the salivary, sebaceous, and sweat glands, the liver, the gastric glands, the pancreas, the intestinal, mammary, and lacrimal glands, and the prostate. The lymph nodes are sometimes called lymph glands but are not glands in the usual sense.
The endocrine glands, or ductless glands, discharge their secretions (hormones) directly into the blood; they include the adrenal, pituitary, thyroid, and parathyroid glands, the islands of Langerhans in the pancreas, the gonads, the thymus, and the pineal body. The exocrine glands discharge through ducts opening on an external or internal surface of the body; they include the salivary, sebaceous, and sweat glands, the liver, the gastric glands, the pancreas, the intestinal, mammary, and lacrimal glands, and the prostate. The lymph nodes are sometimes called lymph glands but are not glands in the usual sense.
Classification of glands according to mode of secretion. From Applegate, 2000.
acinous gland one made up of one or more acini (oval or spherical sacs).
adrenal gland see adrenal gland.
apocrine gland one whose discharged secretion contains part of the secreting cells.
areolar g's Montgomery's glands.
axillary g's lymph nodes in the axilla.
Bartholin g's two small mucus-secreting glands, one on each side in the lower pole of the labium majus and connected to the surface by a duct lined with transitional cells, which opens just external to the hymenal ring. Their exact function is not clear but they are believed to secrete mucus to moisten the vestibule during sexual excitement. Called also major vestibular glands.
Bowman's g's olfactory glands.
bronchial g's seromucous glands in the mucosa and submucosa of the bronchial walls.
Brunner's g's glands in the submucosa of the duodenum that secrete intestinal juice; called also duodenal glands.
buccal g's seromucous glands on the inner surface of the cheeks; called also genal glands.
bulbocavernous g's (bulbourethral g's) two glands embedded in the substance of the sphincter of the male urethra, posterior to the membranous part of the urethra; their secretion lubricates the urethra; called also Cowper's glands.
cardiac g's mucus-secreting glands of the cardiac part (cardia) of the stomach.
celiac g's lymph nodes anterior to the abdominal aorta.
ceruminous g's cerumin-secreting glands in the skin of the external auditory canal.
cervical g's
1. the lymph nodes of the neck.
2. compound clefts in the wall of the uterine cervix.
ciliary g's sweat glands that have become arrested in their development, situated at the edges of the eyelids; called also Moll's glands.
circumanal g's specialized sweat and sebaceous glands around the anus; called also Gay's glands.
Cobelli's g's mucous glands in the esophageal mucosa just above the cardia.
coccygeal gland glomus coccygeum.
compound gland one made up of a number of smaller units whose excretory ducts combine to form ducts of progressively higher order.
Cowper's g's bulbourethral glands.
ductless g's endocrine glands.
duodenal g's Brunner's glands.
Ebner's g's serous glands at the back of the tongue near the taste buds.
eccrine gland one of the ordinary or simple sweat glands, which are of the merocrine type.
endocrine g's see endocrine glands.
exocrine g's glands that discharge their secretions through ducts opening on internal or external surfaces of the body; see gland.
fundic g's (fundus g's) numerous tubular glands in the mucosa of the fundus and body of the stomach that contain the cells that produce acid and pepsin.
gastric g's the secreting glands of the stomach, including the fundic, cardiac, and pyloric glands.
Gay's g's circumanal glands.
genal g's buccal glands.
glossopalatine g's mucous glands at the posterior end of the smaller sublingual glands.
haversian g's synovial villi.
holocrine gland one whose discharged secretion contains the entire secreting cells.
intestinal g's straight tubular glands in the mucous membrane of the intestines, in the small intestine opening between the bases of the villi, and containing argentaffin cells. Called also crypts or glands of Lieberkühn.
jugular gland a lymph node behind the clavicular insertion of the sternocleidomastoid muscle.
Krause's gland an accessory lacrimal gland deep in the conjunctival connective tissue, mainly near the upper fornix.
lacrimal g's the glands that secrete tears; see also lacrimal apparatus.
g's of Lieberkühn intestinal glands.
lingual g's the seromucous glands on the surface of the tongue.
lingual g's, anterior seromucous glands near the apex of the tongue.
Littre's g's
1. preputial glands.
2. the male urethral glands.
lymph gland lymph node.
major vestibular g's Bartholin glands.
mammary gland a specialized gland of the skin of female mammals, which secretes milk for the nourishment of their young; it exists in a rudimentary state in the male. See also breast.
meibomian g's sebaceous follicles between the cartilage and conjunctiva of the eyelids. Called also tarsal glands.
merocrine gland one whose discharged secretion contains no part of the secreting cells.
mixed g's
1. seromucous glands.
2. glands that have both exocrine and endocrine portions.
Moll's g's ciliary glands.
Montgomery's g's sebaceous glands in the mammary areola; called also areolar glands.
mucous g's glands that secrete mucus.
olfactory g's small mucous glands in the olfactory mucosa; called also Bowman's glands.
parathyroid g's see parathyroid glands.
parotid g's see parotid glands.
peptic g's gastric glands that secrete pepsin.
pineal gland pineal body.
pituitary gland see pituitary gland.
preputial g's small sebaceous glands of the corona of the penis and the inner surface of the prepuce, which secrete smegma; called also Littre's glands and Tyson's glands.
prostate gland prostate.
pyloric g's the mucin-secreting glands of the pyloric part of the stomach.
salivary g's see salivary glands.
sebaceous gland a type of holocrine gland of the corium that secretes an oily material (sebum) into the hair follicles.
Glands: The relationship of the hair follicle, eccrine and apocrine sweat glands and sebaceous glands. From Copstead, 1995.
sentinel gland an enlarged lymph node, considered to be pathognomonic of some pathologic condition elsewhere.
seromucous g's glands that are both serous and mucous.
serous gland a gland that secretes a watery albuminous material, commonly but not always containing enzymes.
sex gland (sexual gland) gonad.
simple gland one with a nonbranching duct.
Skene's g's the largest of the female urethral glands, which open into the urethral orifice; they are regarded as homologous with the prostate. Called also paraurethral ducts.
solitary g's solitary follicles.
sublingual gland a salivary gland on either side under the tongue.
submandibular gland (submaxillary gland) a salivary gland on the inner side of each ramus of the mandible.
sudoriferous gland (sudoriparous gland) sweat gland.
suprarenal gland adrenal gland.
sweat gland see sweat gland.
target gland any gland affected by a secretion or other stimulus from another gland, such as those affected by the secretions of the pituitary gland.
tarsal g's meibomian glands.
thymus gland thymus.
thyroid gland see thyroid gland.
tubular gland any gland made up of or containing a tubule or tubules.
Tyson's g's preputial glands.
unicellular gland a single cell that functions as a gland, e.g., a goblet cell.
urethral g's mucous glands in the wall of the urethra; in the male, called also Littre's glands.
uterine g's simple tubular glands found throughout the thickness and extent of the endometrium; they become enlarged during the premenstrual period.
vesical g's mucous glands sometimes found in the wall of the urinary bladder, especially in the area of the trigone.
vulvovaginal g's Bartholin's glands.
Waldeyer's g's glands in the attached edge of the eyelid.
Weber's g's the tubular mucous glands of the tongue.
sweat
[swet]the salty fluid, consisting largely of water, excreted by the sweat glands in the skin. Called also perspiration.
In high temperatures, during strenuous exertion, or in times of unusual emotional stress, the sweat output of the body may exceed several quarts per day. Even on a cool day without exertion or emotional stress, the body loses well over a pint of fluid in sweat. This latter kind of sweating is known medically as “insensible” perspiration because it is virtually unnoticeable; as the sweat reaches the surface of the skin, it evaporates immediately. When sweating becomes noticeable, it is known as “sensible” perspiration.
The chief function of sweat glands and perspiration is to maintain the body temperature at a constant level. Thus the skin is cooled as perspiration evaporates. The blood in the capillaries of the skin likewise is cooled before it courses back into the body. The sweat glands have a minor excretory function. Perspiration contains water, sodium chloride, and small amounts of urea, lactic acid, and potassium ions. It also contains antibacterial substances that defend the body against infection.
In high temperatures, during strenuous exertion, or in times of unusual emotional stress, the sweat output of the body may exceed several quarts per day. Even on a cool day without exertion or emotional stress, the body loses well over a pint of fluid in sweat. This latter kind of sweating is known medically as “insensible” perspiration because it is virtually unnoticeable; as the sweat reaches the surface of the skin, it evaporates immediately. When sweating becomes noticeable, it is known as “sensible” perspiration.
The chief function of sweat glands and perspiration is to maintain the body temperature at a constant level. Thus the skin is cooled as perspiration evaporates. The blood in the capillaries of the skin likewise is cooled before it courses back into the body. The sweat glands have a minor excretory function. Perspiration contains water, sodium chloride, and small amounts of urea, lactic acid, and potassium ions. It also contains antibacterial substances that defend the body against infection.
sweat gland one of the glands that secrete sweat, found in the corium or subcutaneous tissue, and opening by a duct on the surface of the body. There are two types: The ordinary or eccrine sweat glands are unbranched, coiled, tubular glands distributed over almost all of the body surface; they promote cooling by evaporation of their secretion. The apocrine sweat glands are large, branched, specialized glands that empty into the upper portion of a hair follicle instead of directly onto the skin surface, and are found only on certain areas of the body, such as around the anus and in the axilla. A sweat gland is innervated by cholinergic nerve fibers of the parasympathetic nervous system and can also be stimulated by the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine that circulate in the blood. Called also sudoriferous or sudoriparous gland.
Sweat gland. From Mahon and Manuselis, 1995.
sweat retention syndrome
1. a dermatologic condition due to occlusion of sweat ducts, which may result in symptoms ranging from pruritus, scratch dermatitis, and miliaria to very persistent inflammatory changes, depending upon the extent of the blockage, environmental temperature, and duration of sweating stimulus.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
sweat gland
n.
Any of the numerous small, tubular glands that are found nearly everywhere in the skin of humans and that secrete perspiration externally through pores to help regulate body temperature.
The American Heritage® Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2007, 2004 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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ECCRINE AND APOCRINE SWEAT GLANDS
sweat gland
Any of the simple, coiled, tubular glands found on all body surfaces except the margin of the lips, glans penis, and inner surface of the prepuce. The coiled secreting portion lies in the corium or subcutaneous portion of skin; the secretory duct follows a straight or oblique course through the dermis but becomes spiral in passing through the epidermis to its opening, a sweat pore. Most sweat glands are merocrine; those of the axilla, areola, mammary gland, labia majora, and circumanal region are apocrine. Sweat glands are most numerous on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.
See: illustration; apocrine gland; eccrine glandSee also: gland
Medical Dictionary, © 2009 Farlex and Partners
sweat gland
a structure present in the skin of some mammals that secretes sweat containing sodium chloride as part of the cooling system. A typical human has about 2.5 million sweat glands. Dogs, cats and rabbits are amongst the mammals that do not sweat, but use evaporation from the upper respiratory tract to lose excess body heat.Collins Dictionary of Biology, 3rd ed. © W. G. Hale, V. A. Saunders, J. P. Margham 2005