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Glite Dictionary
Ramsay Hunt syndrome

Ramsay Hunt syndrome

9.1
A rare illness from a virus that causes facial paralysis, ear pain, dizziness and sometimes hearing loss
  • noun
  • /ˈræmzi hʌnt ˈsɪnˌdroʊm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : síndrome de Ramsay Hunt
  • The patient was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome after developing facial paralysis and severe ear pain.

Examples

  • Treatment for Ramsay Hunt syndrome often includes antiviral medication and corticosteroids.

  • Hearing loss can be a complication associated with Ramsay Hunt syndrome.

  • She was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome last year.

  • Is Ramsay Hunt syndrome common among children?

  • The doctor explained that Ramsay Hunt syndrome can cause symptoms like facial paralysis and vertigo.

  • Patients with Ramsay Hunt syndrome may experience severe ear pain along with other neurological symptoms.

  • Early diagnosis of Ramsay Hunt syndrome is crucial to prevent complications like hearing loss.

Surface Forms

Ramsay Hunt syndrome singular
Ramsay Hunt syndromes plural

Morphology

Ramsay + Hunt + syndrome

This is an eponymic medical term: the word 'syndrome' clearly signals a medical condition so a B1 learner who knows that constituent will infer it is a set of symptoms/a disorder. However, 'Ramsay Hunt' are proper names that give no semantic information about cause or specific symptoms, so the precise meaning (facial paralysis, varicella zoster involvement, etc.) is not predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Ramsay Hunt syndrome is named after Dr James Ramsay Hunt, the doctor who first described people with ear pain, facial weakness and hearing loss caused by the chickenpox virus. That's why the name now refers to this specific nerve illness today.