craniotomy
Meaning of craniotomy: A craniotomy creates a temporary opening in the skull to give surgeons direct access to the brain for a planned neurosurgical procedure.
Definition of craniotomy
A craniotomy is a surgical procedure in which a section of bone, called a bone flap, is temporarily removed from the skull to give a surgeon direct access to the brain. Once the intended procedure, such as removing a tumor, repairing a blood vessel, or relieving pressure, is complete, the bone flap is typically replaced and secured back into position.
The size and location of a craniotomy depend on the area of the brain that needs to be reached, and imaging is used beforehand to plan the precise placement of the opening. The procedure is performed under general anesthesia in most cases, with the patient closely monitored throughout.
A craniotomy is distinct from a craniectomy, in which the removed bone flap is not replaced right away, often because brain swelling makes immediate replacement unsafe, with the bone flap returned later or replaced with an artificial implant once swelling has subsided.
How craniotomy is built
- crani/o Combining form · Greek skull
- -otomy, -tomy Suffix · Greek cutting into, incision
A medical term is read from its ending backwards: the suffix first, then the prefix, then the root. See all 223 word parts.
Used in a sentence
Neurosurgery performed a craniotomy to remove the mass identified on imaging.
Good to know
A craniotomy is distinguished from a craniectomy by whether the bone flap is replaced immediately, a difference that depends mainly on the degree of brain swelling anticipated after the procedure.
Word origin
Where “craniotomy” comes from
Formed from Greek kranion, meaning skull, and -tomy, from tome, meaning cutting.