What is the medical term for superficial skin loss due to friction?

The medical term for superficial skin loss due to friction is abrasion. An abrasion occurs when the outer layer of skin is scraped away, which commonly happens in incidents like falls or through repeated rubbing against a surface. This type of injury is typically characterized by its shallow depth, affecting only the epidermis—the outermost layer of skin—leading to redness, pain, and sometimes minor bleeding.

The other options do not relate to the described condition. Anemia refers to a deficiency in red blood cells or hemoglobin, which impacts oxygen transport in the body, not skin injuries. Antibody is a type of protein produced by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects like bacteria and viruses, while artifact generally refers to an object made or shaped by humans, often used in cultural or archaeological contexts and unrelated to skin injuries. Thus, abrasion is the only term applicable to the description of superficial skin loss due to friction.