Conjunctivitides

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Inflammations of the conjunctiva of the eye characterized by redness, irritation, and discharge; multiple instances or types of this ocular condition; various diagnosed or occurring forms of conjunctival inflammation
2. Conditions involving the inflammation of the membrane covering the white of the eye and inner eyelids causing discomfort and redness; occurrences of these eye inflammations in plural; different episodes or manifestations of conjunctival irritation
3. Several inflammations affecting the transparent layer lining the eyelids and eye surface causing symptoms such as redness, swelling, and discharge; plural form indicating more than one case; various pathological presentations of conjunctival inflammation

Etymology: "Conjunctivitides" is the Latin-style plural of "conjunctivitis," the name for inflammation of the conjunctiva, the thin membrane covering the white of the eye and the inner surface of the eyelids. The base word "conjunctiva" comes from New Latin, where it describes a membrane that joins or connects parts of the eye. The ending "-itis," used in medicine for inflammation, has a long Greek pedigree. It descends from the Ancient Greek suffix "-ītis," which formed adjectives and nouns linked to disease, and it was carried into New Latin, where physicians used it freely to name new inflammatory conditions. English then adopted it as a standard medical suffix, so "conjunctivitis" is a modern coinage built from a Latin-derived base and a Greek-derived ending rather than an ancient word. Because "-itis" is a Greek-derived suffix, its plural is strictly "conjunctivitides," following the Greek third-declension pattern, though "conjunctivitises" is also used in English.

Synonyms: eye inflammations, conjunctivitis cases