(n) obstruction of the circulatory system caused by an air bubble as, e.g., accidentally during surgery or hypodermic injection or as a complication from scuba diving, Syn. gas embolism, aeroembolism
(n) serious condition in which fat blocks an artery; fat can enter the blood stream after a long bone is fractured or if adipose tissue is injured or as a result of a fatty liver
n. [ L. embolismus, from Gr. &unr_; to throw or put in, insert; cf. &unr_; intercalated: cf. F. embolisme. See Emblem. ] 1. Intercalation; the insertion of days, months, or years, in an account of time, to produce regularity; as, the embolism of a lunar month in the Greek year. [ 1913 Webster ]
2. Intercalated time. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]
3. (Med.) The occlusion of a blood vessel by an embolus. Embolism in the brain often produces sudden unconsciousness and paralysis. [ 1913 Webster ]
{ } a. [ Cf. F. embolismique. ] Pertaining to embolism or intercalation; intercalated; as, an embolismic year, i. e., the year in which there is intercalation. [ 1913 Webster ]