lithotomy position
- noun
- /lɪˈθɒtəmi pəˈzɪʃən/
- Specialized
:
posición de litotomía
- The doctor instructed her to lie down in the lithotomy position to prepare for the examination.
Examples
-
All patients were operated on under general anesthesia in the lithotomy position with urinary catheterization.
Academic text (2012) -
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) -
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) -
During the procedure, the nurse ensured that the patient was placed in the lithotomy position for better access.
-
For a thorough pelvic exam, it is essential for the woman to assume the lithotomy position on the examination table.
Surface Forms
Morphology
lithotomy + position
Although 'position' is transparent, 'lithotomy' is a specialized medical term (not analyzable by a B1 learner from its parts) and does not transparently indicate the specific posture for examinations. The compound denotes a technical, culture-/register-specific posture, so its meaning cannot be derived from its constituents by an average B1 learner.
Etymology
The term lithotomy position comes from an old operation called lithotomy, which means 'cutting a stone'. Surgeons used this position, lying on the back with knees bent and legs apart, to reach and remove bladder stones, so the phrase now names the same lying position used in some exams and operations.
