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trephination

trephination

1 9.9
A surgery that removes a round piece of bone from the skull
  • noun
  • /trɛfəˈneɪʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : trepanación

Examples

  • Prepare for trephination.

  • Hal says he fell off a building while working construction, and Tim told me it was self-trephination.

  • Intraoperative photograph shows placement of the urethral sound through the trephination into the frontal sinus, with external palpation to guide the reduction. L: Discussion

    Academic text (2009)
  • The surgeon explained that trephination might be necessary to relieve pressure on the brain.

  • Years ago, doctors used trephination as a method to treat severe head trauma.

  • Trephination involves removing a circular section of bone from the skull to treat brain injuries.

Synonyms

trepanation
vstrephination
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Making a hole in the skull during surgery to reach the brain

is the operation removing a circular bone section rather than just the hole
trephining
vstrephination
  • Specialized
9.9

A hole in the skull or the small bone piece removed during surgery

refers to the operation that removes the circular bone section, not the resulting hole

How Invasive

craniectomy
  • Specialized
1 9.9
craniotomy
  • Specialized
7 9.5
trephination
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Surface Forms

trephination singular
trephinations plural

Morphology

trephination = trephine (transparent) = trephine + ation

A regular nominalization from the verb 'trephine' using '-ation', forming a noun for the procedure or result.

Etymology

The word trephination comes from the old Greek word trypanon, which means 'borer'. Think of a 'drill' making a round hole; trephination is the same idea in surgery, removing a circular piece of skull to relieve pressure.