Acariasis

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˌæk.əˈɹaɪ.ə.sɪs/

Definitions

1. A medical condition resulting from mite infestation that causes skin irritation and potential allergic reactions
2. An ailment marked by the presence of mites causing dermal inflammation and discomfort
3. An infestation of mites on the skin that leads to irritation and discomfort

Etymology: "Acariasis" is a medical coinage built from two parts, and the first of them is itself borrowed from a scientific Latin name. "Acar-" comes from "Acarus," the genus name for mites, which was adopted from Greek "akari," a tiny creature or mite, a word derived from "akari," meaning something too small to be cut. The second part, "-iasis," is a suffix from Greek used in medicine to name a disease or condition caused by something specific, as in "elephantiasis." Put together, the term simply means a disease caused by mites. It was assembled in the 19th century, when physicians and naturalists were coining precise names for infections and infestations. Ancient Greeks had no word for this condition, so the term is a modern construction from classical building blocks rather than an inherited piece of Greek medical vocabulary.