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Substance Misuse Research: Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: A New Intervention: A Community Based, Structured Health Visitor Assessment

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Glossary of terms

Coloboma

A defect in the structure of the eye, most commonly in the iris (the coloured part of the eye) that results in an irregularly shaped pupil, often keyhole shaped (coloboma is Latin for keyhole)

Infant

A child in the first year of life

NAS

Neonatal abstinence syndrome

Neonatal

Pertaining to a newborn infant

Neonatal abstinence syndrome ( NAS)

A group of symptoms affecting a newly born infant whose mother has been misusing substances, usually heroin

Neonate

A newborn infant

Neonatologist

A physician who specialises in the care of newborn infants

Nystagmus

Inappropriate repetitive eye movements, usually but not always in a horizontal direction

Pre-term

Used to describe an infant who has been born before completing 37 weeks gestation. The term 'premature' is less precise, as it was originally defined by the WHO in term of birth weight. There is however no noun derived from 'pre-term,' and 'prematurity' is usually used

Squint

A condition in which the eyes point in different directions; also known as boss eye

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Page updated: Monday, September 4, 2006