Waiting Your Turn:
Hospital Waiting Lists in Canada
Appendix 2: Glossary of Terms
Aneurysm Surgery: a surgical procedure to correct a localized abnormal dilatation of a blood vessel, usually an artery, due to a congenital defect or a weakness in the wall of the vessel.
Angiography/Angioplasty: angiography is the diagnostic or therapeutic radiography of the heart and blood vessels using a radiopaque (impenetrable to x-rays or other forms of radiation) contrast medium (types include magnetic resonance imaging, interventional radiology, and computed tomography), and an angioplasty is the alteration of a blood vessel, either surgically or by dilating the vessel using a balloon inside the lumen (the space within an artery or vein).
Arthroplasty: plastic surgery to reshape or reconstruct a diseased joint ("interphalangeal" refers to a joint between two phalanges, i.e., fingers or toes).
Bladder Fulguration: destruction of bladder tissue by means of high-frequency electric sparks.
Blepharoplasty: plastic surgery on the eyelid.
Bronchoscopy: examination of the bronchi through a bronchoscope (an endoscope designed to pass through the trachea for visual inspection of the tracheobronchial tree).
Bronchus: the bronchus, or windpipe, is one of the two large branches of the trachea.
Carotid Endarterectomy: a surgical technique for removing intra-arterial obstructions of the lower cervical portion of the internal carotid artery (one of two arteries that comprise the principal blood supply to the head and neck).
Cataract Removal: removal of a cataract (i.e., opacity of the lens of the eye, its capsule, or both).
Cholecystectomy: excision of the gallbladder by abdominal incision or laparoscopy.
Colonoscopy: examination of the upper portion of the rectum with an elongated speculum or a colonoscope (an instrument for examining the colon).
Cornea—Pterygium: triangular thickening of the bulbar conjunctiva extending from the inner canthus (eye slit) to the border of the cornea with the apex toward the pupil.
Cornea Transplant: transplant of the cornea (transparent anterior portion of the fibrous outer layer of the eyeball composing about one-sixth of its surface).
Craniofacial Procedures: procedures concerning the head and the face.
Cystectomy: removal of a cyst; excision of the cystic duct and the gallbladder, or just the cystic duct; excision of the urinary bladder or a part of it.
Cystoscopy: examination of the bladder with a cystoscope (an instrument for interior examination of the bladder and ureter).
Digit Neuroma: a neuroma (i.e., a tumour composed of nerve cells) affecting a digit (finger or toe).
Dilation and Curettage: a surgical procedure that expands the cervical canal of the uterus (dilation) so that the surface lining of the uterine wall can be scraped (curettage).
Disk Surgery/Laminectomy: a laminectomy is the excision of a vertebral posterior arch, usually to remove a lesion or herniated disc.
Gastroscopy: examination of the stomach and abdominal cavity using a gastroscope (an endoscope for inspecting the stomach's interior).
Glaucoma: a group of eye diseases characterized by increased intraocular pressure, resulting in atrophy of the optic nerve and possibly leading to blindness.
Hallux Valgus: displacement of the big toe toward the other toes.
Haemorrhoidectomy: the removal of haemorrhoids by one of several techniques including surgery, cryotherapy, infrared photocoagulation, laser surgery, or ligation by use of rubber bands applied to the base of the haemorrhoid.
Hernia/Hydrocele: a hernia is a protrusion or projection of an organ or part of an organ through the wall of the cavity that normally contains it, and a hydrocele is the accumulation of a serous fluid in a saclike cavity.
Hysterectomy: surgical removal of the uterus through the abdominal wall or vagina.
Hysteroscopic Procedures: procedures involving inspection of the uterus by the use of a special endoscope called a hysteroscope (an instrument for examining the uterine cavity).
Iris/Ciliary Body/Sclera/Anterior Chamber: iris (the coloured contractile membrane suspended between the lens and the cornea in the aqueous humour of the eye, separating the anterior and posterior chambers of the eyeball and perforated in the centre by the pupil); ciliary muscle (the smooth muscle forming a part of the ciliary body of the eye: contraction pulls the choroid forward, lessening tension on the fibres of the zonula (suspensory ligament) and allowing the lens, which is elastic, to become more spherical: accommodation for near vision is accomplished by this process); and, sclera (the outer layer of the eyeball made of fibrous connective tissue: at the front of the eye, it is visible as the white of the eye and ends at the cornea, which is transparent).
Lacrimal Duct: tear duct.
Laparoscopic Procedures: procedures involving abdominal exploration using a laparoscope (an endoscope designed to permit visual examination of the abdominal cavity).
Mammoplasty: plastic surgery of the breast.
Mastectomy: excision of the breast.
Meniscectomy/Arthroscopy: a meniscectomy is the removal of meniscus cartilage of the knee, and arthroscopy is the direct visualization of a joint by means of an arthroscope (an endoscope for examining the interior of a joint).
Myringotomy: incision of the tympanic membrane (of the ear).
Neurolysis: the stretching of a nerve to relieve pain; the loosening of adhesions surrounding a nerve; the disintegration or destruction of nerve tissue.
Ostectomy: surgical excision of a bone or a portion of one.
Peripheral Nervous System: the portion of the nervous system outside the central nervous system.
Prostatectomy: excision of part or all of the prostate gland (radical is the complete removal, while non-radical is a partial removal).
Retina/Choroid/Vitreous: retina (the innermost layer of the eye, which receives images transmitted through the lens and contains the receptors for vision, the rods and cones); choroid (the dark blue vascular layer of the eye between the sclera and the retina, extending from the ora serrata to the optic nerve: it consists of blood vessels united by connective tissue containing pigmented cells and contains five layers); and, vitreous body (a transparent jelly-like mass composed of collagen fibrils and a gel (vitreous humour): it fills the cavity of the eyeball, behind the lens and in front of the retina).
Rhinoplasty and/or Septal Surgery: rhinoplasty is plastic surgery of the nose, and septal surgery is a surgical procedure on the nasal septum, i.e., the wall dividing the two nasal cavities.
Strabismus: a disorder of the eye in which optic axes cannot be directed to the same object: the squinting eye always deviates to the same extent when the eyes are carried in different directions.
Thyroid and Other Endocrine Glands: the thyroid is an endocrine gland in the neck, anterior to and partially surrounded by the thyroid cartilage and upper rings of the trachea, and endocrine glands are ductless glands that produce an internal secretion discharged into the blood or lymph and circulated to all parts of the body (hormones, the active principles of the glands, affect tissues more or less remote from their place of origin).
Tonsillectomy and/or Adenoidectomy: a tonsillectomy is the surgical removal of the tonsils and an adenoidectomy is the excision of the adenoids.
Tubal ligation: surgery to tie the fallopian tubes (through which ova and spermatozoa travel).
Tuboplasty: plastic repair of a fallopian tube or tubes in an attempt to restore patency so that fertilization of the ovum may occur.
Tympanoplasty: any one of several surgical procedures designed either to cure a chronic inflammatory process in the middle ear or to restore function to the sound-transmitting mechanism of the middle ear.
Varicose vein: an enlarged, twisted superficial vein.
Source: Thomas (1997).
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