Definition

Noun: * Inflammation of the mastoid: A medical condition characterized by the inflammation or infection of the mastoid process, the bony prominence behind the ear. This is often a complication of a middle ear infection (otitis media).

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The patient was diagnosed with mastoiditis following a severe, untreated ear infection.
  • Symptoms of acute mastoiditis can include pain, swelling, and redness behind the ear.
  • Before antibiotics, mastoiditis was a common and serious complication of otitis media.

Advanced Usage

• "Acute mastoiditis": Refers to a sudden, severe onset of the infection.
  • The child was hospitalized for treatment of acute mastoiditis.
• "Chronic mastoiditis": Refers to a long-standing or recurrent inflammation of the mastoid air cells.
  • Chronic mastoiditis sometimes requires surgical intervention.

Variants and Related Words

• Mastoid (adj/noun): Pertaining to the mastoid process; or the mastoid process itself.
  • The surgeon examined the mastoid bone on the X-ray.
• Mastoidectomy (noun): A surgical procedure to remove part of the mastoid bone.
  • A mastoidectomy was performed to drain the infection.

Synonyms

• Mastoid infection: A more general, descriptive term for the condition.

Notes

• Mastoiditis is a specific medical term. In non-medical contexts, it is typically described as "an infection in the bone behind the ear."
• The term itself does not have direct phrasal verbs or idioms associated with it, as it is a clinical diagnosis.

Noun

1. inflammation of the mastoid