Noxious
A noxa ( Latin noxa "damage") is a substance or circumstance that has a damaging, pathogenic (i.e. disease-causing) effect on an organism or on a body organ. The term is mainly used in medicine. Scientists differentiate between endogenous (internal) and exogenous (external) noxae. In a broader sense, noxa is understood to mean any type of dangerous, potentially harmful substance and harmful influence.
The most diverse elements can be noxious for humans :
- Physical influences
- Extreme temperatures
- Mechanical trauma ( sharp and blunt violence , noise , vibration , air pressure: overpressure , underpressure , explosion)
- Electrical irritation, see electrical accident
- UV radiation or ionizing radiation such as X-rays
- Chemical substances
- Microbiological pollutants
- Psychosocial conditions
- lonliness
- stress
- iatrogenic noxa impairment due to errors in psychological diagnosis or assessment (due to the diagnostic measure itself)
Examples of damage to a body organ are the liver noxae :
- alcohol
- other poisons ( drugs , heavy metals , trichlorethylene , anesthetic gases , amanitin )
- Hepatitis viruses
- Malnutrition and overeating that are rich in fat and carbohydrates