keratoconjunctivitis
- noun
- /ˌkɛrətoʊkənˌdʒʌŋktɪˈvaɪtɪs/
- Specialized
- The doctor diagnosed her with keratoconjunctivitis after she complained of redness and irritation in both her eyes.
- keratoconjunctivitis sicca
Examples
-
The woman was referred to a geriatrician, who confirmed the presence of keratoconjunctivitis sicca with a Schirmer's test and Sjogren's disease with an antibody test.
Academic text (1999) -
Its manifestations typically include xerostomia and keratoconjunctivitis sicca.
Academic text (1999) -
If left untreated, keratoconjunctivitis may cause significant discomfort and blurred vision.
-
He was prescribed ointments to alleviate the symptoms of keratoconjunctivitis, which were caused by an allergic reaction.
Surface Forms
Morphology
keratoconjunctivitis = conjunctivitis (semi-transparent) = kerato + conjunctiva + itis
The word is formed by adding the medical combining form 'kerato-' (relating to the cornea) to 'conjunctivitis'; the structure is clear to those familiar with medical combining forms but not to average B1 learners.
Etymology
Keratoconjunctivitis is made of parts that name the eye parts and mean 'inflammation'. kerato- comes from an old Greek word for 'horn' used for the cornea, conjunctiva comes from a Latin root meaning 'joined', like conjunction, and -itis means 'inflammation', as in tonsillitis. So keratoconjunctivitis means inflammation of the cornea and the eye lining.
