Dictionary of Medical Terms

The colored portion of the eye. It’s a muscle that controls the amount of light entering the pupil.

Inflammation of the iris.

Washing of a body cavity or wound with a stream of water.

A lack of blood supply to a body part.

Intrauterine device. Used for contraception.

Intravenous.

Intravenous pyelography.

Yellow discoloration of the skin and eyes caused by the buildup of bile in the blood.

The middle part of the small intestine, located between the duodenum and ileum.

The joining of two or more bones. In general, joints allow flexibility and mobility. However, some joints (for example, those…

Of the neck or throat, as in jugular veins.

Bluish-purple nodules of the skin that often bleed. These frequently occur in people who have AIDS.

Excessive growth of scar tissue on the skin.

The main protein of skin, hair and nails.

Inflammation of the cornea of the eye.

A deformity of the cornea in which the cornea resembles the end of a football.

The initial breakdown products of fatty acid metabolism. Unavailability of carbohydrates from starvation or uncontrolled diabetes mellitus increases the production…

A pair of organs in the upper abdominal cavity that separate the body’s water and waste products from the blood…

The complex hinge joint of the upper and lower leg involving the femur, tibia and patella.

A deformity in which the knees rub together or touch each other in walking.

Lip-shaped structures; often used to describe the outer folds of the female genitalia.