Bunions Glossary of Terms

1. Foot Problems Slideshow Pictures
2. What Feet Say About Health Slideshow Pictures
3. Take the Feet Facts Quiz!

Acute: Of abrupt onset, in reference to a disease. Acute often also connotes an illness th...

Adjacent: Lying nearby. Related terms include superjacent, subjacent, and circumjacent. Fr...

Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint. When joints are inflamed they can develop stiffness, w...

Bunion: A localized, painful swelling at the base of the big toe due to new bone formation...

Bursitis: Bursitis is inflammation of a bursa. A bursa is a tiny fluid-filled sac that fu...

Cartilage: Firm, rubbery tissue that cushions bones at joints. A flexible kind of cartilag...

Cortisone: A naturally occurring adrenocorticoid hormone that is produced in minute amount...

Cysts: Cysts are abnormal, closed sac-like structures within a tissue that contain a liqui...

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

Essential: In medicine, of unknown cause, as in essential hypertension (high blood pressur...

Foot pain: Foot pain is the sensation of discomfort in the foot arising from disorders or ...

Gait: A manner of walking. Observation of gait can provide early diagnostic clues for a nu...

Gout: Condition characterized by abnormally elevated levels of uric acid in the blood, rec...

Hallux: The big toe.

Heredity: The genetic transmission of characteristics from parent to child.

Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, an...

Inflammation: A localized reaction that produces redness, warmth, swelling, and pain as a ...

Injury: Harm or hurt. To harm, hurt, or wound. The word injure may be in physical or emot...

Joint: The area where two bones are attached for the purpose of permitting body parts to m...

Laser: A powerful beam of light that is used in some types of surgery to cut or destroy ti...

Laser surgery: A type of surgery that uses the cutting power of a laser beam to make blood...

Metatarsophalangeal: Referring to both the metatarsus and the phalanges of the toes.

Nerve: A bundle of fibers that uses electrical and chemical signals to transmit sensory an...

Neuromuscular: Pertaining to both nerves and muscles, as in neuromuscular blockade by an a...

NSAID: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, a medication that is commonly prescribed or pu...

Operation: In medicine, a surgical procedure. Many operations are named after persons. The...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Progressive: Increasing in scope or severity, advancing, or going forward. For example, a ...

Quality of life: The patient's ability to enjoy normal life activities. Quality of life is...

Recurrence: The return of a sign, symptom, or disease after a remission. The reappearance ...

Steroid: One of a large group of chemical substances classified by a specific carbon struc...

Stress: In a medical or biological context stress is a physical, mental, or emotional fact...

Surgery: The branch of medicine that employs operations in the treatment of disease or inj...

Therapy: The treatment of disease. Therapy is synonymous with treatment.

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

Valgus: (valga, valgum) Angled outward, bent or twisted outward, as in cubitus valgus, cox...

X-ray: High-energy radiation with waves shorter than those of visible light. X-ray is used...