Medical Dictionary

General Information

A B C D E F H I L M N O P R S T U V W X

 

Abdomen – n. The part of the body that lies between the chest and the pelvis and encloses the stomach, intestines, liver, spleen, and pancreas

 

Abdominal – adj. of, or pertaining to the part of the body that lies between the thorax and the pelvis and encloses the stomach, intestines, liver, spleen, and pancreas

 

Acetaminophen – n. A crystalline compound, C8H9NO2, used in medicine to relieve pain and reduce fever

 

Acupuncture – n. A procedure used in or adapted from Chinese medical practice in which specific body areas are pierced with fine needles for therapeutic purposes or to relieve pain or produce regional anesthesia.

 

Adjuvant co analgesic – n. A medication that reduces or eliminates pain with an additive to increase or aid its effect

 

Analgesics – n. Agents that relieve pain without causing loss of consciousness

 

Anatomic – adj. of or relating to the human body

 

Anterior – n. located before or in front

 

Anti-inflammatory drugs – n. Medication used to reduce inflammation

 

Arthritis – n. Inflammation of a joint, usually accompanied by pain, swelling, and stiffness, and resulting from infection, trauma, degenerative changes, metabolic disturbances, or other causes. It occurs in various forms, such as bacterial arthritis, osteoarthritis, or rheumatoid arthritis.

 

Biomechanical – adj. having to do with the mechanics of a body-part or function of a living body, such as of the heart or of locomotion.

 

Cartilage – n. tough elastic tissue

 

Catheter – n. a thin flexible tube inserted into the body to permit introduction or withdrawal of fluids or to keep the passageway open

 

Centralized pain – n. pain that is concentrated in a specific location

 

Cervical – adj. Of or relating to a neck

 

Cervical arthritis – n. arthritis located in the neck

 

Cervical vertebrae – n. the spinal bones located in the neck

 

Chemonucleolysis – n. treatment of a slipped disk by the injection of a substance to dissolve the displaced disk material

 

Coccyx – n. also called the “tailbone,” a small triangular bone at the base of the spinal column in humans and tailless apes, consisting of several fused vertebrae

 

Congenital – adj. Of or relating to a condition that is present at birth, as a result of either heredity or environmental influences

 

CT (Computerized Tomography) – n. a method of examining body organs by scanning them with X rays and using a computer to construct a series of cross-sectional scans along a single axis

 

Diagnostic tests – n. Tests serving to identify a particular disease

 

Discectomy – n. The partial or complete removal of a disk between the vertebrae.

 

Discography – n. An examination of the disk space between the vertebrae using x-rays after injection of contrast dye into the disk

 

Disk – n. A round, flattened, plate like structure

 

Diskitis – n. An inflammation of a disk between vertebrae not caused by bacteria

 

Electromyography – n. An examination used for diagnosis of neuromuscular disorders with the use of an instrument that produces an audio or visual record of the electrical activity of a skeletal muscle by means of an electrode inserted into the muscle or placed on the skin.

 

Enzyme – n. Any of numerous proteins produced by living organisms and functioning as specialized initiators of biochemical reactions

 

Epidural injection – n. injection of an anesthetic substance into the epidural space of the spinal cord in order to produce epidural anesthesia

 

Extradiscal treatments – n. procedures performed outside of a disk or disks

 

Extremity – n. a bodily limb or appendage

 

Facet – n. A small, smooth, flat surface on a bone

 

Facet joints – n. a point where two bones meet

 

Foramina – n. plural form of foramen, an opening or orifice, as in a bone

 

Fusion – n. a merging of separate parts into a unified whole

 

Herniated disk – n. a disk that has protruded through an abnormal opening in the wall that contains it.

 

Imaging – v. the action or process of producing an image, especially of a part of the body by radiographic techniques

 

Incontinence – n. The inability to control bladder and bowel functions

 

Infection – n. the possession of a pathogen or disease

 

Inflammation – n. A protective reaction of tissue to irritation, injury, or infection, characterized by pain, redness, swelling, and sometimes loss of function. 

 

Interventional pain management specialist – n. a doctor specializing in medicine focusing on minimally invasive, state of the art technologies, most commonly utilizing needles, probes and wands, to address underlying structural abnormalities to relieve pain

 

Intradiscal treatments – n. procedures performed within a disk or disks

 

Lamina – n. A thin layer of bone, membrane, or other tissue

 

Laminectomy - surgical removal of the bony arches on one or more vertebrae

 

Lead – n. a flexible or solid insulated conductor connected to or leading out from an electrical device

 

Ligament – n. A sheet or band of tough, fibrous tissue connecting bones or cartilages at a joint or supporting an organ

 

Lumbar – adj. Of, near, or situated in the part of the back and sides between the lowest ribs and the pelvis.

 

Manipulation – v. the act or practice of handling and moving in an examination or for therapeutic purposes

 

MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging) – n. The use of a device to produce electronic images of specific atoms and molecular structures in solids, especially human cells, tissues, and organs

 

Muscle spasm – n. a painful and involuntary muscular contraction

 

Myelogram – n. see “myelography”

 

Myelography – n. An x-ray of the spinal cord after injection of air or a substance visible on x-rays into the space below the delicate membrane enclosing the spinal cord and brain

 

Myofascial pain – n. pain located in a sheet or band of fibrous connective tissue enveloping, separating, or binding together muscles, organs, and other soft structures of the body surrounding and separating muscle tissue

 

Narcotic – n. a soothing, numbing agent

 

Nerve – n. Any of the cordlike bundles of fibers made up of neurons through which sensory stimuli and motor impulses pass between the brain or other parts of the central nervous system and the eyes, glands, muscles, and other parts of the body. Nerves form a network of pathways for conducting information throughout the body.

 

Nerve functioning – a nerve’s performing or able to perform its regular function

 

Nerve root – n. The part of a nerve that serves as a base or support

 

Neuropathic pain – n. pain of the nature of, or suffering from, nervous disease.

 

Obesity – n. the condition of having excessive body fat; women-30% or more body fat; men-20% or more

 

Osteophyte – n. A small, abnormal bony growth

 

Osteoporosis – n. A disease in which the bones become full of holes, are subject to fracture, and heal slowly, occurring especially in women following menopause and often leading to curvature of the spine from collapse of the vertebrae.

 

Paralysis – n. inability to move or function

 

Pathophysiology – n. The functional changes associated with or resulting from disease or injury.

 

Pelvis – n. A basin-shaped structure of the skeleton, composed of several bones, that rests on the lower limbs and supports the spinal column. 

 

Percutaneous – adj. Passed, done, or effected through the skin

 

Radiculopathy – n. Disease of the spinal nerve roots.

 

Ruptured disk – n. see "herniated disk"

Sacrum – n. A triangular bone made up of five fused vertebrae and forming the back section of the pelvis

 

Scalpel – n. A small straight knife with a thin sharp blade used in surgery and dissection.

 

Sciatica – n. Pain along a nerve in the hip, usually caused by a herniated disk of the lumbar region of the spine and radiating to the buttocks and to the back of the thigh

 

Slipped disk – n. Protrusion of a part of a disk located between vertebrae, occurring usually in the lower back region and often causing back pain or sciatica

 

Somatic – adj. Of or relating to the portion of the vertebrate nervous system that regulates voluntary movement

 

Spinal – adj. of, relating to, or situated near the spinal column or cord

 

Spinal canal – n. The passage formed by openings in the vertebrae through which the spinal cord and its membranes pass

 

Spinal column – see “spine”

 

Spinal cord – n. The thick cord of nerve tissue that extends through the spinal column and from which the spinal nerves branch off to various parts of the body

 

Spine –n. your spine is divided into three parts of 24 bones, known as vertebrae, and serves to support the skeleton

 

Spondylosis – n. Degeneration of the spinal column, especially a fusion and immobilization of the vertebral bones

 

Staphylococcus aureus – n. a bacterium that causes several illnesses or infections

 

Steroid – n. a fat-soluble compound having important physiological effects

 

Steroid injection – n. an injection of a fat-soluble compound that has important physiological effects

 

Structural – adj. of or relating to the physical makeup of a plant or animal body

 

Surgical fusion – n. the process of joining together of separate parts during surgery

 

Suture – n. The fine thread or other material used surgically to close a wound or join tissues

 

Thoracic vertebrae – n. vertebrae located in the middle section of the spine between the head and abdomen

 

Traction – n. the process of putting bones or muscles under tension with a system of weights and pulleys to keep them from moving or to relieve pressure on them

 

Ultrasound – n. The use of sound waves above the range audible to the human ear for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes, specifically to image an internal body structure

 

Vertebrae – n. Any of the bone segments forming the spinal column.

 

Vertebral – adj. having to do with vertebrae

 

Vertebral foramen – n. a hole located in spinal bones

 

Visceral – adj. pertaining to One of the organs, as the brain, heart, or stomach, in the great cavities of the body of an animal; especially applied to the organs contained in the abdomen.

 

Wand – n. a surgical instrument used in minimally invasive procedures

 

X-ray – n. This is the commonest form of imaging used in clinical practice everywhere in the world with the image captured on photographic film