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Definition
| The prevention of pain. General anesthesia puts the patient to sleep. Local anesthesia numbs a specific body part. Regional anesthesia, such as spinal anesthesia and epidural anesthesia, numbs the nerves that conduct sensation to a circumscribed body area. |
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Definition
| middle-layer of the the membranes which cover the brain and spinal cord |
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Definition
| the largest and most numerous of the supporting, or glial, cells in the brain and spinal cord. Astrocytes (meaning "star cells" because of their shape) contribute to the blood-brain barrier, help regulate the chemical environment around cells, respond to injury, and release regulatory substances that influence nerve cells. |
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Definition
| The arm of a nerve cell that normally transmits outgoing signals from one cell body to another. Each nerve cell has one axon, which can be relatively short in the brain but can be up to three feet long in other parts of the body. |
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Definition
| A protective barrier formed by the blood vessels and glia of the brain. It prevents some substances in the blood from entering brain tissue. |
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Definition
| the class of neurotransmitters that includes norepinephrine and dopamine |
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Definition
| Extensions from the neuron cell body that take information TO the cell body. A single nerve may possess many dendrite |
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Definition
| a neurotransmitter present in regions of the brain that regulate movement, emotion, motivation and feelings of pleasure |
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Definition
| The tough fibrous membrane covering the brain and the spinal cord and lining the inner surface of the skull. It is the outermost of the three meninges that surround the brain and spinal cord. |
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Definition
| An organ of the body, either a muscle or a gland, that responds to a motor neuron impulse. |
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Definition
| A group of chemicals produced in the brain that reduce pain and improve mood. |
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Definition
| (en-KEF-uh-lins). Naturally occurring molecules in the brain. Enkephalins attach to special receptors in your brain and spinal cord to stop pain messages. They also affect other functions within the brain and nervous system. |
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Definition
| The body's response to perceived danger or stress, involving the release of hormones and subsequent rise in heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle tension. |
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Definition
| A mass of nervous tissue, composed principally of nerve-cell bodies, usually lying outside the central nervous system. |
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Definition
| Supporting tissue that is intermingled with the essential elements of nervous tissue especially in the brain and spinal cord. |
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Definition
| A neuron that is neither purely sensory nor motor, but that connects other neurons. |
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Definition
| A set of brain structures that generates our feelings, emotions, and motivations. It is also important in learning and memory. |
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Definition
| the three membranes (pia mater, arachnoid mater, and dura mater) that surround the brain and spinal cord. |
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Definition
| A type of immune cell found in the brain. Microglia are scavengers, engulfing dead cells and other debris. In Alzheimer’s disease, microglia are found associated with dying nerve cells and amyloid plaques. |
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Definition
| A neuron that conveys impulses initiating muscle contraction or glandular secretion. |
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Definition
| Clear fluid in the front of the eye, between the cornea and the iris, that provides nutrients to the cornea and the lens. The fluid is produced by the ciliary body. Glaucoma causes a difficulty in draining this fluid, and pressure builds up. The result is damage to the optic nerve and loss of vision. |
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Definition
| The outer projecting portion of the ear |
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Definition
| A sensory nerve cell or sense organ, as of smell or taste, that responds to chemical stimuli. |
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Definition
| The dark-brown vascular coat of the eye between the sclera and the retina. Also called choroid coat, choroid membrane. |
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Definition
| A spiral-shaped cavity of the inner ear that resembles a snail shell and contains nerve endings essential for hearing |
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Definition
| he mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelid and the exposed surface of the eyeball. |
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Definition
| A visual defect in which the unequal curvature of one or more refractive surfaces of the eye, usually the cornea, prevents light rays from focusing clearly at one point on the retina, resulting in blurred vision. |
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Term
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Definition
| Opacity of the lens or capsule of the eye, causing impairment of vision or blindness. |
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Term
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Definition
| Inability to perceive one or more colors. |
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Term
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Definition
| Inflammation of the conjunctiva, characterized by redness and often accompanied by a discharge. |
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Definition
| Any of a group of eye diseases characterized by abnormally high intraocular fluid pressure, damaged optic disk, hardening of the eyeball, and partial to complete loss of vision. |
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Definition
| a specialized receptor located within the semicircular canals that detects head movements |
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Definition
| The fluid in the membranous labyrinth of the inner ear. |
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Definition
| The cells that make up taste buds. |
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Definition
| A compound tubuloalveolar gland that secretes tears. Also known as tear gland. |
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Term
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Definition
| A transparent, biconvex body of the eye between the iris and the vitreous humor that focuses light rays entering through the pupil to form an image on the retina. |
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Definition
| A specialized sensory end organ that responds to mechanical stimuli such as tension, pressure, or displacement. |
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Term
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Definition
| the hearing organ of the inner ear; contains receptors that respond to sound waves |
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Term
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Definition
| Tiny bones in the middle ear—the incus, malleus, and stapes—that convey sound impulses from the eardrum to the inner ear. |
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Term
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Definition
| Any of the small projections on the top of the tongue, in particular vallate and fungiform papillae, which contain taste buds. |
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Definition
| The fluid in the space between the membranous and bony labyrinths of the inner ear. |
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Term
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Definition
| A nerve ending, cell, or group of cells specialized to sense or receive light. |
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Term
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Definition
| The ability to sense the location, position, orientation, and movement of the body and its parts. |
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Term
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Definition
| The apparently black circular opening in the center of the iris of the eye, through which light passes to the retina. |
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Term
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Definition
| The inner, light-sensitive layer of the eye containing rods and cones. The retina transforms the image it receives into electrical signals that are sent to the brain via the optic nerve. |
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Term
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Definition
| The tough white membrane that forms the outer layer of the eyeball. |
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Definition
| Any of three tubular and looped structures of the inner ear, together functioning in maintenance of the sense of balance in the body. |
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Term
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Definition
| The membrane that divides the outer ear from the middle ear. The vibrations of this membrane in response to sound waves lead to the sensation of hearing. |
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Term
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Definition
| The clear gelatinous substance that fills the eyeball between the retina and the lens. |
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Term
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Definition
| An abnormal condition of the eye in which vision is better for distant objects than for near objects. It results from the eyeball being too short from front to back, causing images to be focused behind the retina. Also called farsightedness |
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Term
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Definition
| Eye surgery in which the surface of the cornea is reshaped using a laser, performed to correct certain refractive disorders, such as myopia. |
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Term
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Definition
| condition in which the cells of the macula lutea degenerate, resulting in blurred vision and ultimately blindness. |
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Term
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Definition
| A pathological condition of the inner ear characterized by dizziness, ringing in the ears, and progressive loss of hearing. Also called Ménière's syndrome. |
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Term
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Definition
| A visual defect in which distant objects appear blurred because their images are focused in front of the retina rather than on it; nearsightedness. Also called short sight. |
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Term
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Definition
| A condition of the eyes in which vision is normal in daylight or other strong light but is abnormally weak or completely lost at night or in dim light. The condition may result from vitamin A deficiency, disease, or hereditary factors. |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| A disease of the ear in which the movement of the stapes within the oval window becomes impeded by abnormal deposits of spongy bone, leading to a progressive loss of hearing. |
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Term
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Definition
| A condition of diminished auditory acuity associated with old age. |
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Term
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Definition
| Inability of the eye to focus sharply on nearby objects, resulting from loss of elasticity of the crystalline lens with advancing age. |
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Term
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Definition
| An area of diminished vision within the visual field. |
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Term
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Definition
| A visual defect in which one eye cannot focus with the other on an object because of imbalance of the eye muscles. |
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Term
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Definition
| A sound in one ear or both ears, such as buzzing, ringing, or whistling, occurring without an external stimulus and usually caused by a specific condition, such as an ear infection, the use of certain drugs, a blocked auditory tube or canal, or a head injury. |
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Term
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Definition
| A contagious disease of the conjunctiva and cornea, caused by the gram-negative bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis and characterized by inflammation, hypertrophy, and formation of granules of adenoid tissue. It is a major cause of blindness in Asia and Africa. |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| A white fatty material, composed chiefly of lipids and lipoproteins, that encloses certain axons and nerve fibers. Also called medulla. |
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Term
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Definition
| Any of the impulse-conducting cells that constitute the brain, spinal column, and nerves, consisting of a nucleated cell body with one or more dendrites and a single axon. Also called nerve cell. |
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Term
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Definition
| A chemical substance, such as acetylcholine or dopamine, that transmits nerve impulses across a synapse. |
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Term
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Definition
| A constriction in the myelin sheath, occurring at varying intervals along the length of a nerve fiber. |
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Term
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Definition
| A substance, C8 H11 NO3, both a hormone and neurotransmitter, secreted by the adrenal medulla and the nerve endings of the sympathetic nervous system to cause vasoconstriction and increases in heart rate, blood pressure, and the sugar level of the blood. Also called noradrenaline. |
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Term
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Definition
| One of the cells comprising the oligodendroglia. |
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Term
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Definition
| The part of the autonomic nervous system originating in the brain stem and the lower part of the spinal cord that, in general, inhibits or opposes the physiological effects of the sympathetic nervous system, as in tending to stimulate digestive secretions, slow the heart, constrict the pupils, and dilate blood vessels. |
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Definition
| The fine vascular membrane that closely envelops the brain and spinal cord under the arachnoid and the dura mater. |
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Term
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Definition
| In the autonomic nervous system, fibers from the ganglion to the effector organ are called postganglionic fibers. |
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Term
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Definition
| A specialized cell or group of nerve endings that responds to sensory stimuli. |
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Term
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Definition
| A reflex to a stimulus is almost instantaneous, as the reflex arc doesn't involve the brain in creating a motor responce. |
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Term
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Definition
| a neuron conducting impulses inwards to the brain or spinal cord |
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Definition
| The part of the autonomic nervous system originating in the thoracic and lumbar regions of the spinal cord that in general inhibits or opposes the physiological effects of the parasympathetic nervous system, as in tending to reduce digestive secretions, speeding up the heart, and contracting blood vessels. |
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Term
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Definition
| The junction across which a nerve impulse passes from an axon terminal to a neuron, muscle cell, or gland cell. |
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Definition
| A closed fluid-filled sac that functions to provide a gliding surface to reduce friction between tissues of the body. |
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Definition
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Definition
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Definition
| A bluish color of the skin and the mucous membranes due to insufficient oxygen in the blood. For example, the lips may show cyanosis. Cyanosis can be evident at birth, as in a "blue baby" who has a heart malformation that permits blood that is not fully oxygenated to enter the arterial circulation. Cyanosis can also appear at any time later in life. |
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Term
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Definition
| Dehydration can be defined as "the excessive loss of water from the body |
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Definition
| Downy hair on the body of the fetus and newborn baby. It is the first hair to be produced by the fetal hair follicles, usually appearing on the fetus at about five months of gestation. It is very fine, soft, and usually unpigmented. Although lanugo is normally shed before birth around seven or eight months of gestation, it is sometimes present at birth. This is not a cause for concern: lanugo will disappear within a few days or weeks of its own accord. |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| Eczema is a general term for many types of skin inflammation, also known as dermatitis. The most common form of eczema is atopic dermatitis (some people use these two terms interchangeably). However, there are many different forms of eczema. |
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Term
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Definition
| Impetigo (pronounced im-puh-TIE-go) is a common infection of the surface of the skin. Impetigo is usually caused by the bacteria Staphylococcus ("staph") or Streptococcus ("strep"). Because this condition is more common in children, some people mistakenly call it "infantigo |
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Term
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Definition
| Having to do with a mucous membrane |
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Term
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Definition
| The membrane that lines the abdominal cavity and covers most of the abdominal organs. (From the Greek peri- meaning around + tonos meaning a stretching = a stretching around). |
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Definition
| The thin covering that protects and cushions the lungs. The pleura is made up of two layers of tissue that are separated by a small amount of fluid. |
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Term
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Definition
| Pronounced "lee-sion" with the emphasis on the "lee," a lesion can be almost any abnormality involving any tissue or organ due to any disease or any injury. |
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Definition
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Definition
| inflammation of peritoneum |
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Term
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Definition
| A normal gland of the skin which empties an oily secretion into the hair follicle near the surface of the skin. |
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Term
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Definition
| The sudoriferous (sweat) glands are small tubular structures situated within and under the skin (in the subcutaneous tissue). They discharge sweat by tiny openings in the surface of the skin. |
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Term
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Definition
| A layer of connective tissue that lines the cavities of joints, tendon sheaths, and bursae and makes synovial fluid, which has a lubricating function. |
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Term
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Definition
| Psoriasis is a chronic (long-lasting) skin disease characterized by scaling and inflammation. Scaling occurs when cells in the outer layer of skin reproduce faster than normal and pile up on the skin's surface. |
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Term
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Definition
| Another name for the hives. Raised, itchy areas of skin that are usually a sign of an allergic reaction |
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