Episode 一詞在醫(yī)學中用得相當頻繁。但它在一般字典上的釋義卻是：產①（文藝作品中的）一段情節(jié)；（幾部曲中的）一部曲，插曲；②（一系列事件中的）一個事件。雖然，這些詞義都與醫(yī)學沒有什么聯(lián)系。考察episode 在醫(yī)學文章中的用法，可以確定它的基本詞義是attack, onset(發(fā)作)。但在翻譯成漢語時，則可能有多種表達法?，F(xiàn)歸納如下：

一、在心臟病、神經病、癲癇等陣發(fā)性疾病中，常譯為"發(fā)作"

1、Although, by definition, no patient presented an acute episode of collapse, three patients had a sudden acute exacerbation of symptoms during the course of their illness. 根據(jù)定義，雖然沒有一個病人出現(xiàn)虛脫急性發(fā)作，但有三人在生病期間，癥狀突然急性惡化。

2、The episodes of bigeminy and ventricular tachycardia were sorted in descending order so that 10 longest episodes were always reviewed. 室性二聯(lián)律和室性心動過速發(fā)作以遞降順序分類，所以總是要觀察十次最長的發(fā)作。

二、譯成"發(fā)病"、"發(fā)生"、"復發(fā)"

1、Episodes of low cardiac output which were accompanied by significant increases in PAP/AOP ratio occurred in 20 patients and were managed by alteration and/or administration of pulmonary vasodilators.

在二十個患有低心輸出血量發(fā)病的患者中，伴有肺動脈和主動脈壓比率明顯增加，其處理方法是改善通氣和、或給以肺血管擴張劑。

2、The other two patients died of other serious concurrent illness after showing sings of recovering their embolic episode.其余兩個病人在栓塞發(fā)生后的恢復期，由于其他嚴重并發(fā)展發(fā)癥而死亡。

三、與數(shù)詞連用，常譯成"……次""發(fā)作……次"

1、About five episodes of nausea and vomiting were associated with this pain. 隨疼痛出現(xiàn)了大約五次惡心和嘔吐。

2、We have summarized our follow-up information on patients with variant angina. We observed five episodes of cardiac arrest in a total of 23 patients with proven coronary spasm. 我們已總結了隨訪變異性心絞痛病人的資料。在總共23例經證明為冠脈經痙攣病人中，我們觀察到五次心跳驟停。

四、有時可省略不譯

1、Did he come out of this episode of unconsciousness? 他蘇醒過來了嗎？

2、However, in cases that had episodes of increased PAP/AOP ratio, the mean duration of function was increased to five days, and this was almost certainl related to the use of continuous tolazoline infusion through the catheter. 然而，在患有增加肺動脈壓和主動脈壓比率的病例中，平均效用時間增加到五天，這幾乎肯定與通過導管繼續(xù)輸入抗腎上腺素有關。

五、有時還可譯成"現(xiàn)象"、"情況"

However, in our experience some patients, in whom a high pulmonary vascular resistance was successfully lowered by the above measures, have had episodes of increased pulmonary vascular resistance post-operatively accompanied by clinical deterioration, which in some cases was extremely rapid. 然而，根據(jù)我們的經驗，通過上述措施，某些病人的肺血管阻力成功地降低了，但術后由于臨床惡化并在某些病例中發(fā)展很快，所以仍有肺血管阻力增高的現(xiàn)象。