lithotomy
1
9.9
- noun
- /lɪˈθɑːtəmi/
- Specialized
- In preparation for her operation, the doctor advised her to lie down in the lithotomy position for better access.
- lithotomy position
Examples
-
The surgeon explained the lithotomy procedure to the patient before the operation to remove the kidney stone.
-
Ideally, the woman should take up the lithotomy position on a couch with stirrups, but few consulting rooms in general practice have this facility.
Academic text (2011) -
All patients were operated on under general anesthesia in the lithotomy position with urinary catheterization.
Academic text (2012) -
She thought it a good experience, in spite of the lithotomy position and the episiotomy she received because she felt this time she was able to birth her baby alone.
Fiction book (1998) -
The lithotomy position with wires and epis and doctors galore is NOT what's right for birthing a baby.
Blog text (4) -
In hospitals, most women are made to push their babies out in the lithotomy (on your back with knees up) position for the convenience of the attendant, when in reality this position is the one that is least effective for pushing.
Blog text (4) -
In fact, a range of indigenous hereditary medical specializations (from inoculation to barber-surgery and lithotomy) have disappeared in the wake of colonialism and the introduction of European medicine from the early 19th century onwards.
Academic text (1996) -
Patients undergoing lithotomy often experience a quick recovery after the removal of stones from their urinary tract.
Compounds
- Specialized
1
9.8
A way of lying on the back with knees bent and thighs apart for vaginal or rectal exams
Surface Forms
Morphology
lithotomy = litho + tomy
The term is built from Greek combining forms ('litho-' meaning stone and '-tomy' meaning cutting) which are not standalone English words and the medical sense is specialized, so an average B1 learner cannot derive the meaning from common English vocabulary.
Etymology
Lithotomy comes from the Greek parts litho- 'stone' and -tomy 'cutting', the same -tomy you see in lobotomy. So lithotomy is a 'cutting' surgery to remove a stone, which is why it means the operation to take out bladder or kidney stones.