Term | Definition |
Accommodation | adjustment of the eye for various distances so that images fall on the retina of the eye |
achromatopsia | severe congenital deficiency in colour perception; also called complete blindness |
acuity | clearness or sharpness of a sensory function |
adnexa | tissues or structures in the body adjacent to or near a related structure |
amblyopia | lazy eye syndrome |
ametropia | an error in refraction causing poor focus |
anacusis | complete deafness; also called anacusia |
anosmia | loss of sense of smell |
antiemetics | treat and prevent nausea, vomiting, dizziness and vertigo by reducing the sensitivity of the inner ear to motion or inhibiting stimuli from reaching the part of the brain that triggers nausea and vomiting |
antiglaucoma agents | decrease aqueous humor production by constricting the pupil to open the angle between the iris and cornea |
articulating | being loosely joined or connected together to allow motion between the parts |
astigmatism | defective curvature of the cornea or lens |
audiometry | measurement of hearing acuity at various sound wave frequencies |
audition | hearing |
blepharoplasty | surgical repair to the eye
cosmetic surgery that removes fatty tissue above and below the eyes that commonly form as a result of the aging process or excessive exposure to the sun |
blepharoptosis | prolapse of the eye lid |
caloric stimulation test | test that uses different water temperatures to assess the vestibule portion of the nerve of the inner ear to determine if nerve damage is the cause of vertigo |
cataracts | opacities on the lens or the capsule that encloses the lens, causing loss of vision |
cerumen | a waxy secretion produced by the glands of the external ear canal to prevent the entrance of tiny foreign particles |
chalazion | small, hard tumor developing on the eyelid, somewhat similar to a sebaceous cyst |
ciliary muscles | muscles which relax or contract to alter the shape of the lens, making it thicker or thinner, thus enabling the light rays to focus upon the retina |
cochlea | snail shaped inner ear structure |
cochlea implant | artificial hearing device that produces useful nearing sensations by electrically stimulating nerves inside the inner ear; also called bionic ear |
conjunctivitis | inflammation of the conjunctiva with vascular congestion, producing a red or pink eye; may be secondary to viral, bacterial or fungal infections or allergy |
convergence | medial movement of the 2 eyeballs so that they are both directed at the object being viewed |
corectasis | dilation of the pupil |
cornea | the clear, transparent portion of the sclera, anterior to the lens |
cyclodialysis | formation of an opening between the anterior chamber and the suprachoroidal space for the draining of aqueous humor in glaucoma |
cycloplegic agents | agents which paralyze ciliary muscles, causing dilation of the pupils |
dacryocystography | radiographic imaging procedures of the nasolacrimal (tear) glands and ducts |
dacryocystorhinostomy | creation of an opening into the nose for draining of tears |
dacryorrhea | flow of tears |
diopter | measurement of refractive error |
ear canal | slender tube lined with glands, through which sound waves travel to the middle ear |
ectropion | eversion or outward turning of the edge of the lower eyelid |
electronystagmography | method of assessing and recording eye movements by measuring the electrical activity of the extraocular muscles |
emmetropia | correct vision |
entropion | inversion or inward turning of the edge or the lower eyelid |
enucleation | removal of the eyeball from the orbit |
epiphora | abnormal overflow of tears |
equilibrium | a state of balance, controlled by the semicircular canals and the vestibule |
esotropia | inward turning of the eye |
ET | exotropia (turning outward of the eyes) |
eustachian tube | a tube which connects the nose and the throat with the cavity of the middle ear |
eustachitis | inflammation of the eustachian tube |
evisceration | removal of the contents of the eye while leaving the sclera and cornea intact |
exophthalmos | protusion of one or both eyeballs |
exotropia | outward turning of the eye |
fluorescein angiography | assesses blood vessels and their leakage in and beneath the retina after injection of fluorescein dye |
glaucoma | accumulation of aqueous humor in the eye |
gustation | taste |
gonioscopy | examination of the angle of the anterior chamber of the eye to determine ocular mobility and rotation and diagnose and manage glaucoma |
hairs of Corti | tiny nerve ending within the cochlea which combine with cochlear fluid to generate nerve impulses to the brain via the auditory nerve |
hordeolum | localized, circumscribed, inflammatory swelling of one of the several sebaceous glands of the eyelid, generally caused by a bacterial infection; also called stye |
humor | any fluid or semifluid of the body |
hyperopia | farsightedness |
incus | one of the 3 bones in the middle ear, shaped like an anvil |
intracapsular extraction | use of a cold metal probe to remove cataracts |
iridectomy | excision of the iris |
iritis | inflammation of the iris |
keratocentesis | surgical puncture of the cornea |
labyrinth | series of intricate communicating passages |
labyrinthitis | inflammation of the inner ear that usually results from an acute febrile process |
lacrimal | pertaining to a tear |
malleus | one of the 3 bones of the middle ear; shaped like a hammer |
mastoid antrotomy | surgical opening of a cavity within the mastoid process |
mastoid process | one of the temporal bones which encloses the sinuses |
meniere disease | disorder of the labyrinth that leads to progressive loss of hearing |
metamorphopsia | visual distortion of objects |
mydriatics | drugs that disrupt parasympathetic nerve supply to the eye or stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, causing the pupil to dilate |
myringoplasty | reconstruction of the ear drum |
noise-induced hearing loss NIHL | condition caused by the destruction of hair cells that organs responsible for hearing, caused by sounds that are "too long, too loud, or too close." |
nyctalopia | impaired vision in dim light; also called night blindness |
nystagmus | involuntary eye movements that appear jerky and may reduce vision or be associated with other, more serious conditions that limit vision |
olfaction | smell |
olfactory | pertaining to smell |
opaque | substance that does not allow the passage of light; not, transparent |
ophthalmic antibiotics | inhibit growth of microorganisms that infect the eye |
ophthalmic decongestants | constrict the small arterioles of the eye, decreasing redness and relieving conjunctival congestion |
ophthalmic moisturizers | sooth dry eyes due to environmental irritants and allergens |
ophthalmodynamometry | visual examination of the interior of the eye using a hand-held instruments called an ophthalmoscope which has various adjustable lenses for magnification and a light source to illuminate the interior of the eye |
ophthalmoplegia | paralysis of the eye |
optometrist | one who specializes in eye measurement |
orthoptic training | exercises intended to improve eye movements or visual tracking that uses training glasses, prism glasses or tinted or coloured lenses |
ossicles | three tiny articulating bones in the middle ear |
otalgia | ear pain |
otic analgesics | provide temporary relief from pain and inflammation associated with otic disorders |
otitis externa | infection of the external auditory canal |
otitis media | inflammation of the middle ear |
otoplasty | corrective surgery for a deformed or excessively large or small pinna |
otosclerosis | hardening of the spongy bone around the oval window of the ear, causing hearing loss |
otoscopy | visual examination of the external auditory canal and the tympanic membrane using an otoscope |
papilledema | edema and hyperemia or the optic disc usually associated with increased ICP, also called choked disc |
perilymph | fluid that very closely resembles spinal fluid but found in the cochlea |
phacoemulsification | method of treating cataracts by using ultrasonic waves to disintegrate a cloudy lens, which is then aspirated and removed |
photophobia | unusual intolerance and sensitivity to light |
photopigments | light-sensitive pigment in the retinal cones and rods that absorbs light and initiates the visual process; also called visual pigment |
prebycusis | impairment of hearing resulting from old age; also called prebyacusia |
presbyopia | form of farsightedness associated with aging; loss of accommodation of the crystalline lens |
pressure-equalizing tubes (PE) | tubes that are inserted through the tympanic membrane; commonly to treat chronic otitis media also called tympanostomy tubes or ventilation tubes |
radial keratotomy | incision of the cornea for treatment of nearsightedness or astigmatism |
refractive | ability to bend light rays as they pass from one medium to another |
retinitis pigmentosa | chronic progressive disease of degeneration of the retina and atrophy of the optic nerve |
retinopathy | any disorder of retinal blood vessels |
retinoscopy | evaluation of refractive errors of the eye by projecting a light into the eyes and determining the movement of reflective light rays |
sclera | the white of the eye, composed of tough, fibrous tissue which serves as a protective shield for the more sensitive structures underneath |
sclerostomy | surgical formation of an opening in the sclera |
ST | esotropia (inward turning of eyes) |
strabismus | condition in which one eye is misaligned with the other or out of synchrony |
stapes | one of the 3 bones of the middle ear; shaped like stirrups |
stye | a localized circumscribed inflammation of the sebaceous gland of the eyelid |
tinnitus | perception of ringing, hissing or other sounds in the ear or head when no external sound is present |
tonometry | evaluation of ICP by measuring the resistance of the eyeball to indentation by an applied force |
trachoma | chronic, contagious form of conjunctivitis common in the southwestern US that typically leads to blindness |
tunic | layer or cot of tissue; also called membrane layer |
tuning for test | method used to evaluate sound conduction using a vibrating tuning fork |
tympanoplasty | reconstruction of the eardrum, commonly due to perforation; also called myringoplasty |
vertigo | hallucination of movement or a feeling of spinning or dizziness |
vestibule | a chamber that joins the choclea and semicircular canals |
visual acuity test (VA) | part of the eye examination that determines the smallest letter that can be read on a standardized chart at a distance of 20 feet |
visual field (VF) | area within which objects may be seen when the eye is in a fixed position |