Hypertrophy意思

"Hypertrophy" is a term derived from Greek, where "hyper" means "over" or "above" and "trophy" means "nourishment" or "growth." In medicine and biology, hypertrophy refers to the abnormal growth of cells or tissues, often in response to increased demand or stimulation. This can occur in various organs and tissues, including the heart, muscles, liver, and others.

For example, in the context of exercise, muscle hypertrophy refers to the increase in muscle size that occurs through strength training as a result of increased muscle fiber size. In the heart, hypertrophy can occur in response to high blood pressure (hypertension) or other conditions that place increased demands on the heart muscle, leading to an enlargement of the heart muscle cells.

Hypertrophy can be physiological, as in the case of muscle growth with exercise, or pathological, as in the case of heart hypertrophy due to hypertension, where it is a response to stress but can lead to complications and is generally considered undesirable.