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1. The first intestinal discharges of the newborn infant, greenish in color and consisting of epithelial cells, mucus, and bile. 2. SYN: opium. [L., fr. G. mekonion, dim. of mekon, poppy]
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me·co·ni·um mi-'kō-nē-əm n a dark greenish mass of desquamated cells, mucus, and bile that accumulates in the bowel of a fetus and is typically discharged shortly after birth
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n.
the first stools of a newborn baby, which are sticky and dark green and composed of cellular debris, mucus, and bile pigments. The presence of meconium in the amniotic fluid during labour indicates fetal distress. See also ileus, peritonitis.
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me·co·ni·um (mə-koґne-əm) [L., from Gr. mēkōnion] a dark green mucilaginous material in the intestine of the full-term fetus, being a mixture of the secretions of the liver, intestinal glands, and some amniotic fluid.Medical dictionary. 2011.