- Not to be confused with Paruresis
Paresis is a condition typified by a weakness of voluntary movement, or partial loss of voluntary movement or by impaired movement. When used without qualifiers, it usually refers to the limbs, but it can also be used to describe the muscles of the
eyes (
ophthalmoparesis), the
stomach (
gastroparesis), and also the
vocal cords (
Vocal cord paresis). Neurologists use the term
paresis to describe weakness, and
plegia to describe
paralysis in which all voluntary movement is lost. The term
paresis comes from the "letting go" or "paralysis" from παρίημι "to let go, to let fall."
