A measure of the tendency of a structure to return to its original form after removal of a deforming force. In medicine and physiology, usually a measure of the tendency of a hollow viscus ( e.g., lung, urinary bladder, gallbladder) to recoil toward its original dimensions upon removal of a distending or compressing force, the recoil pressure resulting from a unit distention or compression of the viscus; the reciprocal of compliance. The relationship between elasticity and e. is of the same nature as that between the specific inductive capacity of an insulator material and the capacitance of a particular condenser made from that material.
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elas·tance (e-lasґtəns) 1. the quality of recoiling without disruption upon removal of pressure. 2. an expression of the ability to recoil without disruption when pressure is removed, such as that of an air- or fluid-filled organ, e.g., the lung or urinary bladder, measured in terms of unit of pressure change per unit of volume change. Symbol E. It is the reciprocal of compliance.Medical dictionary. 2011.