Acute - Definition

This page is not about the diacritic character; see acute accent for more information.

Acute, in geometry, refers to an angle that is less than ninety degrees.

Acute, in medicine, refers to an intense illness or affliction of abrupt onset. This term refers to timescale of a disease and is often contrasted with subacute and chronic course. Examples:

• acute lymphoblastic leukemia
• acute pancreatitis
• acute abdomen
• severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)

Acute - Example Usage