Extradural

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or located outside the dura mater surrounding the brain or spinal cord, this term can also indicate structures or processes involving anatomical regions beyond this protective layer
2. This term pertains to anything situated beyond the dura mater, which includes processes or elements occurring outside the primary protective membrane of the central nervous system
3. Describing areas or activities that occur external to the dura mater, it can refer to various anatomical or medical contexts connected to this membranous structure

Etymology: "Extradural" is built from the Latin prefix "extra-", meaning "outside" or "beyond", and "dural," the adjective from "dura mater," the tough outermost of the three membranes that wrap the brain and spinal cord. The Latin "dura mater" translates literally as "hard mother," a name that reflects how firm and fibrous this layer feels compared with the delicate tissue beneath it. Put together, the term describes anything lying outside that membrane, most often a space or collection of blood between the skull and the dura. Medical writers use it for an extradural haemorrhage, a bleed that can build up quickly after a skull fracture tears blood vessels in that gap.