Surgical

A large nerve of the brachial plexus that carries feeling and movement for the back of the arm and forearm, the wrist and the fingers.

Removal of the whole breast with the pectoralis major and minor muscles and all the axillary lymph nodes.

Electromagnetic energy at the frequencies used for radio, the range in which electrosurgical units run.

Tracking an item by a small tag that answers a radio signal, so a reader can find it without seeing it.

Letting x-rays pass through, so the material looks dark on an x-ray image and does not hide what lies behind it.

Blocking x-rays, so the material shows up white on an x-ray image.

A fast way of putting a patient with a full stomach to sleep and placing a cuffed breathing tube, to lower the risk of aspiration.

The interlocking teeth just below the finger rings of a clamp or needle holder that lock the jaws closed at a chosen tightness.

A radiopaque woven gauze sponge folded into a 4-inch square, used in shallow wounds and, on sponge forceps, in deep ones.

The place on the body that receives a graft or flap, such as the wound bed a skin graft is laid on.

The process of getting better after an illness, injury, surgery or substance use, or the time just after anesthesia.

A bulge of the rectum forward into the back wall of the vagina, from weakened support between them.

One of the two long, straight muscles that run up the front of the abdomen on either side of the midline, from the pubis to the ribs.

A branch of the vagus nerve that loops down into the chest and runs back up beside the trachea to work the muscles that move the vocal cords.

A red electrical outlet connected to the hospital's backup generator, so it keeps working when the power fails.

Anesthesia that numbs one region of the body by blocking its nerves with a local anesthetic while the patient stays conscious.

To take off a contaminated sterile gown and gloves and put on a fresh sterile gown and gloves during a procedure.

The destruction of tissue or an organ transplanted from another person by the patient's own immune system, which attacks it as foreign.

An ultrashort-acting synthetic opioid, given as a continuous IV infusion during anesthesia, that wears off within minutes of stopping.

The artery that branches off the abdominal aorta to carry blood into each kidney.

The funnel inside each kidney where the major calyces meet and collect urine before it passes into the ureter.

The vein that carries filtered blood out of each kidney straight into the inferior vena cava.

The steps that make a used reusable medical device safe to use on the next patient.

Latin for "the thing speaks for itself," the legal doctrine that some injuries do not happen without negligence.

Surgery to remove part of an organ or tissue.

An endoscope with an electrode loop that cuts and coagulates tissue piece by piece through the urethra or cervix, as in a TURP.

How much a material opposes the flow of electric current, measured in ohms; also called impedance.

Latin for "let the master answer," the legal doctrine that an employer is liable for an employee's negligent acts at work.

The innermost zone of the surgical suite, holding the operating rooms, where surgical attire and a mask are required.

A sponge, needle, instrument or piece of a device left in a patient by accident after surgery or another invasive procedure.

A heavy, nonabsorbable stitch through all layers of the abdominal wall, placed a few centimeters from the incision to take strain off it.

Separation of the light-sensing layer of the retina from the pigment layer beneath it, which threatens sight in that eye.

A surgical instrument that holds back tissue or organs so the surgeon can see and reach the operative site.

Behind the eyeball; a retrobulbar block is local anesthetic injected there, into the cone of eye muscles, to numb the eye and stop it moving.

Ejaculation in which the semen goes backward into the bladder instead of out through the penis.

The space behind the peritoneum, against the back wall of the abdomen, holding the kidneys, the pancreas and other organs covered by peritoneum only in front.

Removal of the prostate through a lower abdominal incision, reaching the gland in the space behind the pubic bone without opening the bladder.

A cutting suture needle whose third cutting edge is on the outside of its curve, away from the wound edge.

A position lying on the back on a bed or table that is tilted so the head is higher than the feet, with the body kept straight.

Surgery that reshapes the outside of the nose, for its looks, after an injury or a birth defect, or to fix a breathing problem.

A facelift: surgery that lifts the deeper tissues of the face and neck and removes loose skin to reduce sagging and wrinkles.

A reusable metal or plastic box with a lid and filters or valves, used to package an instrument set for sterilization.

A wheeled stand with one or two metal rings at the top that hold basins for sterile water or saline.

A hospital's system for preventing and controlling harm to patients, visitors and staff, and damage to property.

Surgery done through a computer-assisted electromechanical device that the surgeon controls from a console, most often as minimally invasive surgery.

An intermediate-acting nondepolarizing muscle relaxant given by vein for intubation and to keep the muscles relaxed during surgery.

A lateral transfer device of rollers inside heavy plastic fabric that lets a patient roll across from a stretcher to the OR table with little friction.

A strong surgical instrument with sharp, cup-shaped jaws used to bite away small pieces of bone.

The cleaning, disinfection and preparation of an operating room between one patient and the next.

A long-acting amide local anesthetic, a little weaker than bupivacaine and less toxic to the heart, used for nerve blocks and epidurals.