phaco-, phac-, phako-, phak- +
(Greek: lentil [bean]; lens of the eye)
So called because the lens of the eye resembles a lentil bean in appearance or shape.
Neurologic symptoms, including seizures and mental retardation, may be present.
2. An instrument for measuring the size of a reflected image on the convex surface of the cornea and lens of the eye, by which their curvatures can be determined.
2. The dislocation of the eye lens from its proper place.
2. Excision of part of the lens capsule of the eye for a cataract.
A foldable plastic lens is then inserted through the incision and unfolded.
A procedure in which the lens, clouded by a cataract, is broken up by ultrasound, irrigated, and suctioned out. Most cataract surgery today is performed using phacoemulsification.
Before the advent of this technique, people with cataracts could expect a ten-day hospital stay followed by a lengthy recovery. Today, it is an outpatient procedure.
Instead of making a large incision in the eye and removing the lens, the ophthalmologist can make a tiny one and then insert an ultrasonic tip which, vibrating thousands of times a second, breaks up the cataracts without damaging the surrounding tissue. The remains of the cataract are suctioned out.
The word phakos in Greek is a "lentil" (a lentil bean). The prefix phaco- therefore refers to the lens of the eye which is lentil-shaped.
Related references to "eye" or "eye part" word families: blepharo-; core-; corneo-; eye, eyes; irido-; lenti-, lens-; lenticulo-; ocelli-; oculo-; op-, -optic; ophthalmo-; pupillo-; retino-; uveo-.