| prophylactic | Preventive measure or medication. (16 Dec 1997) |
|---|---|
| prophylactic cranial irradiation | Radiation therapy to the head to prevent cancer from spreading to the brain. (12 Dec 1998) |
| prophylactic mastectomy | <procedure, surgery> Surgery to remove a breast before it has cancer. (16 Dec 1997) |
| prophylactic membrane | A layer of pus cells lining an abscess cavity which have not yet autolyzed. Synonym: prophylactic membrane. (05 Mar 2000) |
| prophylactic treatment | The institution of measures designed to protect a person from an attack of a disease to which he has been, or is liable to be exposed. Synonym: preventive treatment. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ambulatory surgery | <surgery> Operative procedures performed on patients who are admitted to and discharged from a hospital on the same day. (05 Mar 2000) |
| aseptic surgery | The performance of an operation with sterilised hands, instruments, etc., and utilizing precautions against the introduction of infectious microorganisms from without. (05 Mar 2000) |
| cardiovascular surgery | The use of surgery to fix disorders of the heartand/or blood vessels. (09 Oct 1997) |
| radical surgery | Surgery designed to remove all possible diseased tissue, for example, all possible tumour tissue. (12 Dec 1998) |
| major surgery | See: major operation. (05 Mar 2000) |
| vascular surgery | A branch of medicine dealing with the use of surgery to diagnose/treat diseases of the blood vessels. (09 Oct 1997) |
| general surgery | A surgical specialty that involves largely the surgical management of diseases of the bowel, gallbladder, stomach and other digestive organs. (27 Sep 1997) |
| reconstructive surgery | The surgical specialty or procedure concerned with the restoration, construction, reconstruction, or improvement in the shape and appearance of body structures that are missing, defective, damaged, or misshapen. (05 Mar 2000) |
| video-assisted thoracic surgery | A less morbid alternative to "open" thoracotomy that employs cameras, optic systems, percutaneous stapling devices, and assorted endoscopic graspers, retractors, and forceps. Also called video thoracoscopic surgery, it can be selectively applied to various pulmonary, pleural, and pericardial lesions. (05 Mar 2000) |
| perineal surgery | An operation to remove the prostate gland through an incision made between the scrotum and the anus. (12 Dec 1998) |