chorea

American  

[kuh-ree-uh, kaw-, koh-] / kəˈri ə, kɔ-, koʊ- /

noun

Pathology.

1. any of several diseases of the nervous system characterized by jerky, involuntary movements, chiefly of the face and extremities.

2. Also called St. Vitus's dance.  such a disease occurring chiefly in children and associated with rheumatic fever.

3. Veterinary Pathology. a disease of the central nervous system caused by bacterial or organic degeneration, most common in dogs following canine distemper, characterized by irregular, jerky, involuntary muscular movements.

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chorea British  

/ kɒˈrɪə /

noun

1. a disorder of the central nervous system characterized by uncontrollable irregular brief jerky movements See Huntington's disease Sydenham's chorea

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Other Word Forms

• choreal adjective
• choreatic adjective
• choreic adjective
• choreoid adjective

Etymology

Origin of chorea

1680–90; < Greek choreía a dance, equivalent to chor ( ós ) chorus + -eia -y ³

Example Sentences

That’s because children typically develop rigidity as one of the initial movement-related symptoms, and rarely exhibit the jerky, involuntary movements known as chorea that characterize adult-onset disease.

From Nature • May 29, 2018

Its symptoms are well-characterized: involuntary, jerky movements known as chorea; difficulty in coordinating voluntary movements; cognitive impairment; and psychiatric issues such as changes in mood.

From Nature • May 29, 2018

This process, known as protein folding, can go awry, causing such neurological disorders as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s chorea, as well as cystic fibrosis and some cancers.

From New York Times • Oct. 28, 2016

Woody lies dying in a Brooklyn hospital of Huntington's chorea, a hereditary affliction of the nervous system that Arlo may not escape.

From Time Magazine Archive

And she had developed no chorea from her distemper.

From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck