We often assign everyday names to medical conditions, much as we replace the Latin names of plants with more familiar terms such as “Mother-in-law’s tongue” when maybe we should say Dracaena trifasciata to avoid any embarrassment.

We often assign everyday names to medical conditions, much as we replace the Latin names of plants with more familiar terms such as “Mother-in-law’s tongue” when maybe we should say Dracaena trifasciata to avoid any embarrassment.