half-life
(haf′līf″ )

1. The time required for half the nuclei of a radioactive substance to lose their activity by undergoing radioactive decay.
2. In biology and pharmacology, the time required by the body, tissue, or organ to metabolize or inactivate half the amount of a substance taken in. This is an important consideration in determining the proper amount and frequency of drug administration.
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Citation
Venes, Donald, editor. "Half-life." Taber's Medical Dictionary, 25th ed., F.A. Davis Company, 2025. Nursing Central, nursing.unboundmedicine.com/nursingcentral/view/Tabers-Dictionary/741816/all/biologic_half_life.
Half-life. In: Venes DD, ed. Taber's Medical Dictionary. F.A. Davis Company; 2025. https://nursing.unboundmedicine.com/nursingcentral/view/Tabers-Dictionary/741816/all/biologic_half_life. Accessed April 18, 2025.
Half-life. (2025). In Venes, D. (Ed.), Taber's Medical Dictionary (25th ed.). F.A. Davis Company. https://nursing.unboundmedicine.com/nursingcentral/view/Tabers-Dictionary/741816/all/biologic_half_life
Half-life [Internet]. In: Venes DD, editors. Taber's Medical Dictionary. F.A. Davis Company; 2025. [cited 2025 April 18]. Available from: https://nursing.unboundmedicine.com/nursingcentral/view/Tabers-Dictionary/741816/all/biologic_half_life.
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