distraction

1. Difficulty or impossibility of concentration or fixation of the mind. 2. A force applied to a body part to separate bony fragments or joint surfaces. [L. dis-traho, pp. -tractus, to pull in different directions]

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dis·trac·tion dis-'trak-shən n

1 a) diversion of the attention

b) mental derangement

2) excessive separation (as from improper traction) of fracture fragments

dis·tract dis-'trakt vt

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n.

(in orthopaedics) increasing the distance between two points. In limb lengthening procedures callus can be stretched longitudinally by increasing the distance between pins attached to the bone (see callotasis).

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dis·trac·tion (dis-trakґshən) [L. distrahere to draw apart] 1. a state in which the attention is diverted from the main portion of an experience or is divided among various portions of it. 2. a form of dislocation in which the joint surfaces have been separated without rupture of their binding ligaments and without displacement. 3. excessive space between fracture fragments due to interposed tissue or too forceful traction. 4. surgical separation of the two parts of a bone after the bone is transected. 5. unusual width of the dental arch; placement of the teeth or other maxillary or mandibular structures farther than normal from the median plane. See also contraction (def. 3).