Terminology and Etymology in Oculoplastic Surgery

PURPOSE: To provide a collection of important terms in oculoplastic surgery, their etymology, current usage, and clarification of terms with overlapping or often misconstrued definitions. METHODS: Commonly employed terms in oculoplastic surgery were collected, and their etymologies were determined. The authors then examined how these terms are being currently used in the published literature to determine how closely their usage matched the origin of the terms, if any terms had developed multiple meanings, or if multiple terms were being used to describe the same concept. RESULTS: This article assembles in one area much of the important terms in oculoplastic surgery, highlighting how the etymology of the terms both links to their meanings as well as clarifies the appropriate usage of terms that have evolved to develop several different definitions. Special attention is placed on clarifying the correct definitions of closely related but distinct terms. CONCLUSIONS: Most terms in ophthalmology are used in a uniform manner across the literature with definitions closely matching their etymology, but some terms in oculoplastic surgery are being used in a potentially confusing overlapping manner and warrant clarification.