Sclera
The tough white outer coat over the eyeball that covers approximately the posterior five-sixths of its surface. The sclera is continuous in the front of the eye with the cornea and in the back of the eye with the external sheath of the optic nerve.
The word “sclera” is from the Greek “skleros” = hard. The plural is sclerae.
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- Scleredema
A dermatologic disorder characterized by hardening and thickening of the skin, typically over the face, neck, upper back, and shoulders or other areas of skin, but not over the hands or feet. Scleredema comes from scler- (hard) + edema (swelling). Scleredema should not be confused with scleroderma which is a distinct and different disease. The […]
- Sclerencephaly
Scarring and shrinkage of the substance of the brain. Sclerencephaly occurs because of chronic inflammation of the brain matter.
- Scleritis
Inflammation of the sclera. Scleritis causes local pain and can cause vision loss. Scleritis can occur with diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Wegener’s granulomatosis, and lupus. Treatment may include use of anti-inflammatory and cortisone medications taken by mouth, intravenously, or injected into the eye.
- Sclero-
(Or scler-) A confusing prefix that can refer exclusively to hardness (from the Greek “skleros” meaning hard) but that can also refer to the sclera of the eye. Sclerodactyly, for example, is localized thickening and tightness of the skin of the fingers or toes and scleroderma is disease of connective tissue with the formation of […]
- Scleroconjunctival
Pertaining to both the sclera and the conjunctiva. The sclera, a tough white outer coat that covers most of the back of the eyeball, is continuous in the front of the eye with the cornea. The conjunctiva is a clear moist membrane that covers the inner surfaces of the eyelids and the front of eyeball.