barium enema
2
6.2
- noun
- /ˈbɛəriəm ˈɛnəmə/
- Specialized
:
enema de bario
- During the examination, the doctor explained the steps involved in a barium enema to ensure I felt comfortable.
- a double barium enema
- barium enema and colonoscopy
Examples
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Paulson said the Duke study would be the first to indicate virtual colonoscopy is a bit more sensitive than ACBE. Should CT colonoscopy replace air contrast barium enema?
Blog text (5) -
A double-contrast barium enema was offered when a full colonoscopy could not be obtained.
Academic text (1996) -
Have you ever had a barium enema?
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She gave me a barium enema.
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Mr Brown, you know you're scheduled for a barium enema.
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Options include: * rigid sigmoidoscopy; * flexible sigmoidoscopy; * colonoscopy; * barium enema; and
Academic text (2010) -
For air contrast barium enema procedures, a small level of barium is introduced into the colon, which can then be distended with air, coating the top colon with a thin layer of this high-density material.
Blog text (5) -
Patients often find that the barium enema procedure is necessary to provide clearer images of their colon during an X-ray.
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Before the barium enema, the nurse advised me to follow a special diet to prepare for the procedure.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a straightforward noun–noun compound where 'barium' specifies the substance used and 'enema' names the procedure, so a learner who knows both words can infer it is an enema that uses barium for medical purposes. This compositional pattern (material/type + procedure) is common cross-linguistically, making the basic meaning predictable even if the exact radiological details are specialist knowledge.
Etymology
The medical term barium enema describes a test where doctors put a white liquid called barium into the lower bowel using an enema, a small tube and liquid that enter the rectum so the colon shows clearly on X-rays. So, it means a 'test' to make pictures of the inside of the colon.