ANTICHOLINERGIC

The action of certain medications that inhibit the transmission of parasympathetic nerve impulses and thereby reduce spasms of smooth muscle (such as t6hat, for example, in the bladder). Antinuclear antibodies (ANA): Antibodies directed against the nucleus of a cell. The ANA test is almost always positive (indicative of the presence of antinuclear antibodies) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). It may also be positive in other connective tissue diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma.