A syndrome is a clearly recognisable combination of symptoms and signs, which indicate that one or more disease process is active, or has been active at some stage. More than one pathologyThis word refers to the various disturbances of body functions that underlie disease. We may talk, for example, in neurosurgical practice, of congenital, infective, traumatic, neoplastic, vascular and degenerative pathologies. These terms encompass, respectively, conditions present at birth, various infections, injuries, growths, stroke and disorders related to ageing. can present as a single syndrome, for example Cushing’s syndrome being caused by an over-active pituitary gland, or an over-active adrenal gland, or due to steroids being taken by mouth over a long period of time.