An old medical term for an excess of watery fluid in any tissue or space of the body.
Dropsy, mentioned in Luke 14:2, is a symptom of serious disorders, like heart, kidney, or liver disease. Jesus healed a man "who had dropsy," but his illness is not described. The word "dropsy" is now outdated. It has been replaced with more specific medical terms:
Dropsy in the stomach is now called ascites
Dropsy in or below the skin is called edema
Dropsy in the lungs is now called hydrothorax
Dropsy is not mentioned directly in the Old Testament. A reference to swollen feet (Deuteronomy 8:4) could refer to pedal edema or simply to blisters.