Aphacia

/əˈfeɪʃə/ noun

Definition

A medical condition involving the absence or deficiency of the lens in the eye (the same as aphakia, an alternative spelling).

Etymology

From Greek 'a-' (without) + 'phakos' (lentil, used to describe the eye lens due to its shape). The term emerged in 19th-century ophthalmological medicine.

Kelly Says

The ancient Greeks named the eye's lens 'phakos' (lentil) because of its shape—when you lose that lens, whether from surgery or injury, you become aphacic, unable to focus light properly on your retina.

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