| granular ophthalmia | <ophthalmology> A chronic infectious disease of the conjunctiva and cornea, producing photophobia, pain, lacrimation and blindness. It is one of the oldest infectious diseases known to mankind, and dates back several thousand years with first documentation as early as the pharaonic era in Egypt. The disease is associated with poor socioeconomic conditions in general: with overcrowding, poor personal and environmental hygiene and, in particular, with very limited access to water and sanitation. Trachoma has been eliminated as a blinding disease from several previously hyperendemic countries and regions, both through significant improvements in the socioeconomic status of populations and through specific control efforts. Despite these successes, in many least developed countries of the world blinding trachoma continues to be an important public health problem. In some of the countries where trachoma was once hyperendemic, there remain residual pockets of blinding trachoma and complications, such as inturned eyelashes (trichiasis), which require eyelid surgery. Today, the disease is found mainly in poor rural areas, including parts of central and south America, most African countries and some countries in the Eastern Mediterranean. Trachoma is still endemic in several Asian countries, but there is a lack of updated information from some major populations, e.g. In India and China. The organism that causes this disease is Chlamydia trachomatis; a microorganism resembling both bacteria and viruses, which spreads through contact with eye discharge from the infected person (on towels, handkerchiefs, fingers, etc.) and through transmission by eye-seeking flies. Chlamydia trachomatis provokes an inflammatory reaction in the eye with formation of follicles in the conjunctiva. After years of repeated infections, the inside of the eyelids may be scarred so severely that the eyelid turns inwards with eyelashes rubbing on the eyeball. If untreated, this condition leads to blindness. The World Health Organization is working towards global elimination of trachoma, which is responsible, at present, for at least 15% of the world's blindness. Worldwide, there are about 6 million people largely irreversibly blinded by trachoma, and an estimated 146 million cases of active disease in need of treatment, if blindness is to be prevented. International efforts to eliminate trachoma as a blinding disease will be based on a combination of interventions known by the acronym "SAFE", which stands for Surgery for trichiasis (inturned eyelashes), Antibiotics, Facial cleanliness and Environmental improvement. These interventions will be community-targeted and will seek community involvement through the primary health care approach. Origin: Gr. Trachoma = roughness (07 May 1998) |
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| granular pits | Pits on the inner surface of the skull, along the course of the superior sagittal sinus, in which are lodged the arachnoidal granulations. Synonym: foveolae granulares, pacchionian depressions. (05 Mar 2000) |
| granular pneumonocytes | Cuboidal cell's connected with the squamous pulmonary alveolar cell's and having in their cytoplasm lamellated bodies (cytosomes) that represent the source of the surfactant that coats the alveoli. Synonym: granular pneumonocytes, type II cells. (05 Mar 2000) |
| granular trachoma | <ophthalmology> The ordinary form of trachoma marked by the presence of granulations on the conjunctiva. Synonym: granular trachoma. (05 Mar 2000) |
| granular urethritis | <urology> Chronic urethritis with nodular lymphocytic infiltrations in the mucosa. Synonym: granular urethritis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| granular vaginitis | A condition of cattle manifested by the appearance of small, spherical, transparent nodules in the mucosa of the vagina of cows and of the penis of bulls; the mucosa is reddened and a mucopurulent exudate appears on the affected surfaces; it is a non specific hyperplastic response of the lymphatic tissue of these areas to an irritant or an antigen. (05 Mar 2000) |
| abdominal internal oblique muscle | <anatomy, muscle> Origin, iliac fascia deep to lateral part of inguinal ligament, anterior half of crest of ilium, and lumbar fascia; insertion, tenth to twelfth ribs and sheath of rectus; some of the fibres from inguinal ligament terminate in the conjoint tendon; action, diminishes capacity of abdomen, flexes lumbar vertebral column (bends thorax forward); nerve supply, lower thoracic. Synonym: musculus obliquus internus abdominis, abdominal internal oblique muscle. (05 Mar 2000) |
| anterior intercostal branches of internal thoracic artery | One of the arteries supplying the anterior portions of the intercostal spaces of the thoracic wall. Anterior intercostal arteries 1-6 arise as branches of the internal thoracic artery; 7-11 arise as branches of the musculophrenic artery. Synonym: rami intercostales anteriores, rami intercostalis anteriores arteria thoracica interna. (05 Mar 2000) |
| anterior limb of internal capsule | The portion of the internal capsule between the head of the caudate nucleus and the putamen; it lies anterior to the genu of the internal capsule. Synonym: crus anterius capsulae internae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| aponeurosis of internal abdominal oblique muscle | <anatomy> Broad, flat tendinous portion of the internal abdominal oblique muscle. The fleshy fibres of the muscle end in the aponeurosis lateral to the semilunar line. The uppermost portion of the aponeurosis is attached to the outer surfaces and lower borders of the seventh to ninth costal cartilages. Of the portion extending between the costoxiphoid margin and the pubis, the upper two-thirds splits into anterior and posterior laminae at the lateral border of the rectus abdominis muscle to contribute to the anterior and posterior walls of the sheath of the rectus abdominis muscle as they extend to the midline linea alba. The lower third of the aponeurosis does not split but joins the aponeuroses of the external abdominal oblique and transversus abdominis muscles to form the anterior wall of the sheath of the rectus abdominis muscle. The fibres of the portion of the aponeurosis contributing to the rectus sheath decussate with those of the contralateral aponeurosis in the linea alba. The lowermost portion of the aponeurosis blends with the aponeurosis of the transversus abdominis muscle to form the conjoint tendon, attaching to the pubic crest and often the pecten pubis, thus forming the posterior wall of the inguinal canal at the superficial inguinal ring. See: cremasteric fascia, conjoint tendon, rectus sheath. (05 Mar 2000) |
| basal tentorial branch of internal carotid artery | <anatomy, artery> A small branch from the cavernous part of the internal carotid artery to the base of the tentorium. Synonym: ramus basalis tentorii arteriae carotidis internae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ganglionic branch of internal carotid artery | <anatomy, artery> Branch to trigeminal ganglion; a small branch of the cavernous part of the internal carotid artery to the trigeminal ganglion. Synonym: ramus ganglii trigeminalis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| marginal tentorial branch of internal carotid artery | <anatomy, artery> A small branch from the cavernous part of the internal carotid artery to the free margin of the tentorium. Synonym: ramus marginalis tentorii arteriae carotidis internae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| genu of internal capsule | The obtuse angle, opening laterally in the horizontal plane, formed by the union of the two limbs (crus anterius and crus posterius) of the internal capsule. Synonym: genu capsulae internae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| carotid artery, internal | Branch of the common carotid artery which supplies the anterior part of the brain, the eye and its appendages, the forehead and nose. (12 Dec 1998) |