PID
Abbreviation with 5 meanings
| Stands for | Pelvic inflammatory disease |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 5 |
| Categories | Medical, Science & Engineering, Technology & Computing, Military, Business & Finance |
PID has five meanings. The most common are Pelvic inflammatory disease (obstetrics & gynecology) and Proportional-integral-derivative (controller) (engineering); it can also stand for Process identifier, Positive identification and Project initiation documentation.
Meanings of PID at a glance
| # | PID stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pelvic inflammatory disease | Medical › Obstetrics & Gynecology |
| 2 | Proportional-integral-derivative (controller) | Science & Engineering › Engineering |
| 3 | Process identifier | Technology & Computing › Programming |
| 4 | Positive identification | Military › Military Term |
| 5 | Project initiation documentation | Business & Finance › Project Management |
1. Pelvic inflammatory disease
Medical · Obstetrics & Gynecology Abbreviations
Infection of the upper female reproductive organs, including the uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries, usually ascending from sexually transmitted chlamydia or gonorrhea. It causes pelvic pain and fever and can lead to infertility, ectopic pregnancy and chronic pelvic pain.
Example: Cervical motion tenderness and adnexal tenderness: PID, ceftriaxone IM, doxycycline and metronidazole for 14 days.
CDC guidelines advise a low threshold for treatment because delayed therapy increases scarring of the tubes. Sex partners must be treated too. Tubo-ovarian abscess is a serious complication that may require hospitalization or drainage. In immunology PID can mean primary immunodeficiency.
2. Proportional-integral-derivative (controller)
Science & Engineering · Engineering Abbreviations
Control algorithm that continuously adjusts an output, such as valve position or heater power, based on the present error from a setpoint (proportional), the accumulated past error (integral) and the rate of change (derivative). PID loops control temperature, pressure, flow, speed and position in nearly every industry.
Example: After tuning the PID gains, the oven temperature settled within 0.5 °C of the setpoint without overshoot.
Russian-American engineer Nicolas Minorsky analyzed three-term control for automatic ship steering in 1922, and John Ziegler and Nathaniel Nichols published classic tuning rules in 1942. The vast majority of industrial control loops use PI or PID control. Do not confuse PID with P&ID, the piping and instrumentation diagram.
3. Process identifier
Technology & Computing · Programming Abbreviations
The number an operating system assigns to each running process, used to monitor, signal or terminate it. Commands such as ps and top list PIDs, and kill sends signals to them.
Example: Find the stuck server's PID with ps aux, then stop it with kill -15.
On Unix-like systems PID 1 is the init process, systemd on most Linux distributions, which adopts orphaned processes. Many daemons write their PID to a .pid file so scripts can find them later. In engineering PID means a proportional-integral-derivative controller, and in medicine pelvic inflammatory disease.
4. Positive identification
Military · Military Term Abbreviations
Reasonable certainty that a person or object is a legitimate military target, required under the rules of engagement before engaging it with weapons. Pilots, gunners and snipers alike must meet the standard.
Example: The pilot held fire because he could not get PID on the vehicle.
PID standards vary with the situation and rules of engagement. Failures of positive identification have led to friendly fire and civilian casualties. In medicine PID means pelvic inflammatory disease, and in computing it is a process identifier.
5. Project initiation documentation
Business & Finance · Project Management Abbreviations
PRINCE2 set of documents that defines a project before delivery begins, covering business case, scope, organization, plans, controls and quality, and forming the basis for project board approval.
Example: The board signed off the PID, so stage two can start.
In engineering, PID means proportional-integral-derivative controller, and in computing a process identifier.
Related abbreviations
More obstetrics & gynecology abbreviations
- OCP – Oral contraceptive pill
- OHSS – Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome
- Pap – Papanicolaou test
- PGT – Preimplantation genetic testing
- PIH – Pregnancy-induced hypertension
- PMS – Premenstrual syndrome
- POI – Primary ovarian insufficiency
- POP – Pelvic organ prolapse
See all 89 obstetrics & gynecology abbreviations →
More engineering abbreviations
- OT – Operational technology
- P&ID – Piping and instrumentation diagram
- PE – Professional Engineer
- PFD – Process flow diagram
- PLC – Programmable logic controller
- PLM – Product lifecycle management
- RC – Reinforced concrete
- RCA – Root cause analysis
See all 79 engineering abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.