Ectopia (medicine)

In medicine, an ectopia (/ɛkˈtoʊpiə/) is a displacement or malposition of an organ or other body part, which is then referred to as ectopic (/ɛkˈtɒpɪk/). Most ectopias are congenital, but some may happen later in life.

Examples

• Ectopic ACTH syndrome, also known as small-cell carcinoma, a virlulant lung cancer
• Ectopic calcification, a pathologic deposition of calcium salts in tissues or bone growth in soft tissues
• Cerebellar tonsillar ectopia, aka Chiari malformation, a herniation of the brain through the foramen magnum, which may be congenital or caused by trauma.
• Ectopic cilia, a hair growing where it isn't supposed to be, commonly an eyelash on an abnormal spot on the eyelid, distichia
• Ectopia cordis, the displacement of the heart outside the body during fetal development
• Ectopic enamel, a tooth abnormality, where enamel is found in an unusual location, such as at the root of a tooth
• Ectopic expression, the expression of a gene in an abnormal place in an organism
• Ectopic hormone, a hormone produced by a tumor, such as small-cell carcinoma, can cause Cushing's syndrome
• Ectopia lentis, the displacement of the crystalline lens of the eye
• Neuronal ectopia
• Ectopic pancreas, displacement of pancreatic tissue in the body with no connection, anatomical or vascular, to the pancreas
• Ectopic recombination, the recombination between sequences (like leu2 sequences) present at different genomic locations
• Renal ectopia occurs when both kidneys are on the same side of the body
• Ectopic testis, a testis that has moved to an unusual location
• Ectopic thymus, where thymus tissue is found in an abnormal location
• Ectopic thyroid, where an entire or parts of the thyroid are located elsewhere in the body
• Ectopic tooth
• Ectopic ureter, where the ureter terminates somewhere other than the urinary bladder
• Ectopia vesicae, a congenital anomality in which part of the urinary bladder is present outside the body

See also

• Ectopic beat of the heart
• Cervical ectropion
• Ectopic pregnancy, where the fertilized egg implants anywhere other than the uterine wall
• Heterotopia (medicine)