Glossary of Chiropractic & Medical Terms

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S.O.A.P.: 1. Acronym for subjective symptoms, objective signs, assessment and prognosis or plan of management. 2. Method of recording information in a patient's record based on a problem-oriented clinical approach.

SACCULAR (BERRY) ANEURYSM - Sac-like bulging on one side of an artery. Usually arises at an arterial branching.

SACROILIAC JOINT (SI JOINT) – The joint formed between the sacrum and ilium. The upper joint is synovial (ligament encapsulated/fluid filled), and the lower joint if fibrous (fibrous connective tissue).

SACRUM – A heart-shaped bone that is part of the pelvic ring. It articulates with the ilia at the sacroiliac joints and articulates with the lumbar spine at the lumbosacral joint. The sacrum consists of five fused vertebrae that have no intervertebral discs when mature. At birth, it consists of five un-fused segments.

SAFETY: A judgment of the acceptability of any risk in a specific situation during the application of a specific procedure or group of procedures provided by an individual with specified and appropriate training.

SAGITTAL – in the plane that lies front-to-back, splitting our body from top to bottom, e.g. side view. This is opposed to the transverse plane, which lies front-to-back, but splits our body cross-wise, e.g. birds-eye view, or the coronal plane, which lies left-to-right, splitting our body from front-to-back.

SCIATICA - A condition caused by direct pressure or chemical irritation on a lower back nerve root (part of the sciatic nerve bundle). The term indicating pain (sometimes numbness or cramping) along the course of a sciatic nerve, especially noted in the calf, leg, or foot, and often with accompanying gluteal or thigh pain. Pain from the lower back or pelvis that refers into the gluteal or thigh regions, not below the knee, is NOT sciatica.

SCOLIOSIS - Lateral (sideways) curvature of the spine.

SCOTOMA - An area of decreased vision surrounded by an area of less depressed or normal vision.

SCREENING: The application of a test to detect a potential illness or condition in a person who has no known signs or symptoms of that illness or condition. Screening is performed on "at risk" populations in order to determine appropriate intervention.

SENSITIVITY: The likelihood of a positive test in a patient with a disorder (also called true positive rate, TPR). Sensitivity indicates the value of a test in identifying the diseased.

SEPSIS - A state of infection of tissue due to disease-producing bacteria or toxins.

SEPTUM - A thin wall dividing two cavities or masses of softer tissue.

SHUNT - A tube or device implanted in the body, usually made of silastic, to redivert excess CSF away from the brain to another place in the body.

SIGNS – What a patient does not feel, but what a healthcare provider finds through physical examination and testing. Signs often are objective, like blood pressure, muscle weakness, or loss of joint range of motion. Signs often do not correlate with symptoms.

SKELETON - The rigid framework of bones that gives form to the body, protects and supports the soft organs and tissues, and provides attachments for muscles.

SPASM – The automatic, often reflexive, tightening-up of a muscle, with the muscle clenching tightly.

SPECIALIST: A health care provider who has obtained a professionally accepted or recognized level of advanced training and competence with respect to specific procedures or disorders.

SPECIFICITY: The ability to correctly identify negative results among subjects who truly do not have a specific disorder. The likelihood of a negative test in a patient without the disorder (also true-negative rate, TNR). Specificity indicates the value of a test in identifying the non-diseased.

SPINA BIFIDA - A congenital defect of the spine marked by the absence of a portion of the neural arch of the spine. Spina bifida oculta is benign.

SPINAL "ADJUSTMENT" - A chiropractic term that most chiropractors use to describe whatever method (s)) they use to correct spinal problems, whether by hand or with an instrument. See Adjustment.

SPINAL CANAL - The bony channel that is formed by the intravertebral foramen of the vertebrae and in which contains the spinal cord and nerve roots.

SPINAL CORD - The longitudinal cord of nerve tissue that is enclosed in the spinal canal. It serves not only as a pathway for nervous impulses to and from the brain but as a center for carrying out and coordinating many reflex actions independently of the brain.

SPINAL FUSION - Operative method of limiting motion of the spinal column. Can be performed with a variety of metal instruments and bone grafts or bone grafts alone.

SPINAL MANIPULATIVE THERAPY (SMT): This term refers to the range of manual care delivered by chiropractors. It includes adjustive/manipulative and mobilization procedures.

SPINAL STENOSIS - Reduction in the diameter of the spinal canal due to abnormal bone formation or congenital defect in bone. May result in pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots.