Medical Glossary
- ANTERIOR LUMBAR INTERBODY FUSION (ALIF)
- operation where the lumbar spine is approached through an incision in the abdomen. A portion of the affected disc space is removed from the spine and replaced with an implant.
- ANTERIOR SPINAL FUSION
- Approaching the spine from the front, the intervertable disc and/or vertebral body is removed and bone graft is inserted. Some variations of this procedure include the Smith-Robinson, Cloward and dowel procedures.
- ANTERIOR SPURRING
- Ligament turning to bone on anterior side of vertebral body.
- ANTEROLATERAL
- Situated or occurring in front of and to the side.
- ANTI-COAGULANT
- A medication that prevents coagulation of the blood.
- ANTIDIURETIC
- An agent which reduces the output of urine. Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) is formed in the hypothalamus and stored in the posterior pituitary gland. Its secretion reduces urine output.
- AO FIXATEUR INTERNE
- A posteriorly placed spinal fixation device.
- APHASIA
- Difficulty with, or loss of use of language, in any of several ways including reading, writing or speaking. Failure of understanding of the written, printed or spoken word not related to intelligence but to specific lesions in the brain.
- APNEA
- Cessation of respiration; inability to get one's breath.
- APOPLEXY
- A sudden event. Often used as equivalent to stroke.
- ARACHNOID
- Middle layer of membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.
- ARACHNOIDITIS
- Inflammation of the arachnoid membrane, most commonly seen within the spinal cord around the spinal cord and cauda equina.
- ARNOLD-CHIARI MALFORMATION
- A condition in which there is displacement of the medulla and cerebellum into the opening in the basilar part of the occipital bone. It is one of the causes of hydrocephalus and is usually accompanied by spina bifida and menigomyelocele.
- ARTERIOGRAPHY
- See angiography.
- ARTERIOSCLEROSIS
- Thickening and calcification of the arterial wall with loss of elasticity and contractility.
- ARTERIOVENOUS
- Relating to both arteries and veins.
- ARTERIOVENOUS MALFORMATION
- Collection of blood vessels with one or several abnormal communications between arteries and veins which may cause hemorrhage or seizures.
- ARTERY of ADAMKIEWICZ
- An important source of blood supply to the lower portion of the spine, usually occurring at T-9 to T-11 level; however, not the only blood supply to the cord at that level.
- ARTHRALGIA
- Joint pain.
- ARTHRITIS
- Inflammation of a joint usually characterized by swelling, pain and restriction of motion.
- ARTHRODESIS
- The fusion of bones across a joint space, thereby limiting or eliminating movement. It may occur spontaneously or as a result of a surgical procedure, such as fusion of the spine.
- ARTHROPATHY
- Any disease or disorder involving a joint.
- ARTHROPLASTY
- The surgical remodeling of a diseased or damaged joint.
- ARTHROSCOPE
- An instrument inserted into it's joint cavity to view the interior of a joint and correct certain abnormalities. An arthroscope is an endoscope for use in a joint.
- ARTHROSCOPY
- The procedure of visualizing the inside of a joint by means of an arthroscope.
- ARTICULAR
- Pertaining to a joint.
- ASTROCYTE
- Cell which supports the nerve cells (neurons) of the brain and spinal cord.
- ASTROCYTOMA
- Tumor within the substance of the brain or spinal cord made up of astrocytes - often classified from Grade I (slow-growing) to Grade III (rapid-growing).
- ATAXIA
- A loss of muscular coordination, abnormal clumsiness.
- ATHETOSIS
- A condition in which there is a succession of slow, writhing, involuntary movements of the fingers and hands, and sometimes of the toes and feet.
- ATLANTO-AXIAL
- Pertaining to the atlas and the axis; denoting the joint between the first two cervical vertebrae.
- ATLANTO-EPISTRPHIC
- See atlanto-axial.
- ATLANTO-OCCIPITAL
- Relating to the atlas and the occipital bone.
- ATLANTO-ODONTOID
- Relating to the atlas and the dens of the axis.
- ATLAS
- First cervical vertebrae, articulating with the occipital bone and rotating around the dens of the axis.
- ATONIC SEIZURE
- Seizures that are characterized by a sudden loss of muscle tone, causing the individual to instantly drop to the floor, commonly known as drop attacks.
- ATROPHY
- A wasting of the tissues of a body part.
- AURA
- Warning sign that people with epilepsy often experience prior to the onset of a seizure, which may consist of a strange taste, bad feeling, or tingling sensation.
- AUTOGENOUS BONE
- Bone originating from the same individual; i.e., an individual's own bone.
- AUTOGRAFT BONE
- Bone transplanted from one part to another part of the body in the same individual.
- AUTOLOGUS
- a graft in which the donor and recipient area are in the same individual.
- AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
- Involuntary nervous system, also termed the vegetative nervous system. A system of nerve cells whose activities are beyond voluntary control.
- AVASCULAR
- Non-vascular, not provided with blood vessels.
- AVM (ARTERIOVENOUS MALFORMATION)
- Deformity, abnormal shape or structure relating to veins and arteries.
- AXIS
- The vertebral column. The second cervical vertebra, about which the first cervical vertebra rotates, allowing head movement.
- AXON
- The part of a nerve cell that usually sends signals to other nerves or structures.
- BAASTRUP d. (kissing spine)
- False joint formed by wide posterior spinous processes of the lumbar spine. This may become a source of pain.
- BACK PAIN
- nonspecific term used to describe pain below the cervical spine
- BACKBONE
- See Spine.
- BACTERICIDAL
- Causing the death of bacteria.
