intense

19:13 Mar 13, 2007 

It sounds terribly contradictory to me too, but this is alternative medicine and maybe it requires alternative translation!

The only thing that my experience as a daktor tells me is that حادة is not severe/intense. I see that all answerers use "severe" and "acute" interchangeably. This is a popular belief in all countries alike. "Acute" does not mean "severe", it means that the onset of the symptoms was rapid. If you have the same degree of illness and you were OK days or weeks ago, your illness is "acute" but if you have been suffering it for months or years, then your illness is "chronic".

18:37 Mar 13, 2007 

Ya daktor Yasser, do you understand how a condition can be mild and intense at the same time? To me ordinary layperson they sound like contradicting terms, as do حادة/معتدلة. Maybe you can shed some light on this!

13:38 Mar 13, 2007 

أعتقد أن هناك كلمة مفقودة والله أعلم بين حادة ومعتدلة أي أن المريض يعاني من شيء (نزلة) حادة وعرض آخر طفيف / معتدل ، لأنه لا يمكن وصف مرض واحد بالشيء ونقيضه، هذا والله أعلم