Tinnitus Glossary of Terms

1. Tinnitus (Ringing of the Ears) Slideshow
2. Take the Ear Infection Quiz
3. Balance Disorders Slideshow

Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Acoustic: Having to do with sound or hearing. The acoustic nerve (the 8th cranial nerve) i...

Acoustic neuroma: A benign tumor that may develop on the hearing and balance nerves near t...

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

Anemia: The condition of having a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells or quantity ...

Aneurysm: A localized widening (dilatation) of an artery, a vein, or the heart. At the poi...

Antidepressant: Anything, and especially a drug, used to prevent or treat depression.

Aspirin: Once the Bayer trademark for acetylsalicylic acid, now the common name for this a...

Audiogram: A test of hearing at a range of sound frequencies.

Audiologist: A health care professional who is trained to evaluate hearing loss and relate...

Benign: Not malignant. A benign tumor is one that does not invade surrounding tissue or sp...

Biofeedback: A method of treatment that uses a monitor to measure patients' physiologic in...

Blood pressure: The blood pressure is the pressure of the blood within the arteries. It is...

Brain: The portion of the central nervous system that is located within the skull. It func...

Brain tumor: A benign or malignant growth in the brain. Primary brain tumors initially for...

Brainstem: The lowest part of the brain which merges with the spinal cord and provides the...

Caffeine: A stimulant compound found naturally in coffee, tea, cocoa (chocolate), and kola...

Cochlea: The cochlea is the part of the inner ear that converts mechanical energy (vibrati...

Computerized tomography: Pictures of structures within the body created by a computer that...

Deafness: Partial or complete hearing loss. Levels of hearing impairment vary from a mild ...

Dizziness: Painless head discomfort with many possible causes including disturbances of ...

Ear: The hearing organ. There are three sections of the ear, according to the anatomy tex...

High blood pressure: A repeatedly elevated blood pressure exceeding 140 over 90 mmHg. Chro...

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

Inner ear: A highly complex structure whose essential component for hearing is the membran...

Intracranial: Within the cranium, the bony dome that houses and protects the brain.

Jaw: The movable junction of the bones below the mouth (the mandible) and the bone just ab...

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

Magnetic resonance imaging: A procedure that uses magnetism, radio waves, and a computer t...

Middle ear: A part of the ear that consists of the eardrum (tympanic membrane) and, beyond...

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.

Neck: The part of the body joining the head to the shoulders. Also, any narrow or constric...

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

Neuroma: A benign tumor that arises from a nerve as, for example, an acoustic glioma or op...

NIDCD: Stands for National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, one of...

Nose: The external midline projection from the face. The purpose of the nose is to warm, c...

Objective: In a microscope, the objective (also called the objective lens) is the lens nea...

Onset: In medicine, the first appearance of the signs or symptoms of an illness as, for ex...

Organ: A relatively independent part of the body that carries out one or more special func...

OSHA: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, an agency of the US government un...

Otolaryngologist: A physician specialized in diagnosing and treating diseases of the head ...

Otolaryngology: A medical and surgical specialty concerned with the diagnosis, management,...

Outer ear: The part of the ear that is visible along the side of the head. The outer ear c...

Pharmacy: A location where prescription medications are sold. A pharmacy is constantly sup...

Pregnancy: The state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body. Thi...

Prevalence: The proportion of individuals in a population having a disease or characterist...

Quinine: The original antimalarial agent, quinine took its name from the Peruvian Indian w...

Ringing in the ears: Medically called tinnitus, can be due to many causes including ear in...

Scan: As a noun, the data or image obtained from the examination of organs or regions of...

Skull: The skull is a collection of bones which encase the brain and give form to the hea...

Sleep: The body's rest cycle.

Spinal cord: The major column of nerve tissue that is connected to the brain and lies with...

Spinal tap: Also known as a lumbar puncture or "LP", a spinal tap is a procedure whereby ...

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

Stroke: The sudden death of brain cells due to lack of oxygen, caused by blockage of blood...

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

Symptom: Any subjective evidence of disease. In contrast, a sign is objective. Blood comin...

Syndrome: A combination of symptoms and signs that together represent a disease process.

Throat: The throat is the anterior (front) portion of the neck beginning at the back of th...

Thyroid: 1. The thyroid gland. Also, pertaining to the thyroid gland. 2. A p...

Tinnitus: Ringing in the ears. Tinnitus has many causes, including some medications (inclu...

TMJ: Temporomandibular joint.

Tomography: The process for generating a tomogram, a two-dimensional image of a slice or s...

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

Tumor: An abnormal mass of tissue. Tumors are a classic sign of inflammation, and can be ...

Vessel: A tube in the body that carries fluids. Examples of vessels are blood vessels and ...