Cryosurgery Health Dictionary

Surgical excision of the PITUITARY GLAND. This can be done by opening the skull, by inserting very low-temperature needles (CRYOSURGERY) into the gland, or by inserting needles of radioactive YTTRIUM-90.... hypophysectomy

That branch of medicine involved in the treatment of injuries, deformities or individual diseases by operation or manipulation. It incorporates: general surgery; specialised techniques such as CRYOSURGERY, MICROSURGERY, MINIMALLY INVASIVE SURGERY (MIS), or minimal access (keyhole) surgery, and stereotactic sugery (see STEREOTAXIS); and surgery associated with the main specialties, especially cardiothoracic surgery, gastroenterology, GYNAECOLOGY, NEUROLOGY, OBSTETRICS, ONCOLOGY, OPHTHALMOLOGY, ORTHOPAEDICS, TRANSPLANTATION surgery, RECONSTRUCTIVE (PLASTIC) SURGERY, and UROLOGY. Remotely controlled surgery using televisual and robotic techniques is also being developed.

It takes up to 15 years to train a surgeon from the time at which he or she enters medical school; after graduating as a doctor a surgeon has to pass a comprehensive two-stage examination to become a fellow of one of the ?ve recognised colleges of surgeons in the UK and Ireland.

Surgery is carried out in specially designed operating theatres. Whereas it used to necessitate days and sometimes weeks of inpatient hospital care, many patients are now treated as day patients, often under local anaesthesia, being admitted in the morning and discharged later in the day.

More complex surgery, such as transplantation and neurosurgery, usually necessitates patients being nursed post-operatively in high-dependency units (see INTENSIVE THERAPY UNIT (ITU)) before being transferred to ordinary recovery wards. Successful surgery requires close co-operation between surgeons, physicians and radiologists as well as anaesthetists (see ANAESTHESIA), whose sophisticated techniques enable surgeons to undertake long and complex operations that were unthinkable 30 or more years ago. Surgical treatment of cancers is usually done in collaboration with oncologists. Successful surgery is also dependent on the skills of supporting sta? comprising nurses and operating-theatre technicians and the availability of up-to-date facilities.... surgery

The use of cold or freezing in treatment. (See also cryosurgery.)... cryotherapy

The most common form of skin cancer. Its main cause is cumulative exposure to ultraviolet light; most tumours develop on exposed sites, chie?y the face and neck. It grows very slowly, often enlarging with a raised, pearly edge, and the centre may ulcerate (rodent ulcer). It does not metastasise (see METASTASIS) and can be cured by surgical excision or RADIOTHERAPY. Small lesions can also be successfuly treated by curettage and cauterisation (see ELECTROCAUTERY), LASER treatment or CRYOSURGERY. If the diagnosis is uncertain, a biopsy and histological examination should be done.... basal cell carcinoma

Cancer of the cervix – the neck of the womb – is one of the most common cancers affecting women throughout the world. In some areas its incidence is increasing. This cancer has clearly identi?able precancerous stages with abnormal changes occurring in the cells on the surface of the cervix: these changes can be detected by a CERVICAL SMEAR test. Early cancer can be cured by diathermy, laser treatment, electrocoagulation or cryosurgery. If the disease has spread into the body of the cervix or beyond, more extensive surgery and possibly radiotherapy may be needed. The cure rate is 95 per cent if treated in the early stages but may fall as low as 10 per cent in some severe cases. Around 3,000 patients are diagnosed as having cervical cancer every year in the United Kingdom, and around 1,500 die from it. Latest ?gures in England show that the incidence rates have fallen to under 11 per 100,000 women, while death rates fell by more than 40 per cent during the 1990s. The sexual behaviour of a woman and her male partners in?uences the chances of getting this cancer; the earlier a woman has sexual intercourse, and the more partners she has, the greater is the risk of developing the disease.... cervical cancer

An operation performed in the treatment of cataracts (see under EYE, DISORDERS OF), in which the anterior lens capsule of the EYE is torn open with a needle, allowing the aqueous ?uid to dissolve the opaque soft lens matter, which is gradually washed away into the bloodstream. This ‘extra-capsular extraction’ may need to be repeated several times before all the opaque lens matter disperses. Although a relatively simple procedure, it is unsuitable for patients over the age of 35 (when the nucleus of the lens becomes increasingly hard), and CRYOSURGERY and LASER therapy have become the preferred methods of treatment.

Needling is also used for certain minor dermatological procedures, such as removal of small facial cysts and scabies mites.... needling

Removal or destruction of diseased tissue by excision (cutting away), cryosurgery (freezing), radiotherapy, diathermy (burning), or laser treatment.... ablation

(CO) A colourless, odourless gas. Carbon dioxide is present in small amounts in the air and is an important by-product of metabolism in cells. It is produced by the breakdown of substances such as carbohydrates and fats to produce energy, and is carried in the blood to the lungs and exhaled. Carbon dioxide helps to control the rate of respiration: when a person exercises, CO2 levels in the blood rise, causing the person to breathe more rapidly in order to expel carbon dioxide and to take in more oxygen.

When it is compressed and cooled to -75ºC, carbon dioxide becomes solid dry ice, which is used in cryosurgery.... carbon dioxide

Frozen carbon dioxide.

Carbon dioxide changes from a gas to a solid when cooled, without passing through a liquid phase.

Dry ice is sometimes applied to the skin in cryosurgery, a technique used, for example, to treat warts.... dry ice

A birthmark caused by abnormal distribution of blood vessels. Types of haemangioma include portwine stains, stork marks, and strawberry naevi. They generally disappear without leaving a scar by 5–7 years.

Haemangiomas do not usually require treatment. However, a haemangioma that bleeds persistently or that looks unsightly may need to be removed, by laser treatment, cryosurgery, radiotherapy, embolization, or plastic surgery.... haemangioma

This has been a cult, or fashion, since the earliest days of history. Apart from the mixed motives for its use, it has a therapeutic use in matching the colour of skin grafts (see GRAFT). It is performed by implanting particles of col-our pigment into the deeper layer of the skin known as the corium (see SKIN). This is done by means of a needle or needles. The main medical hazard of tattooing is infection, particularly HEPATITIS. The tattooed person may also become allergic to one of the pigments used, particularly cinnabar. Removal, which should be done by a plastic surgeon, always leaves a residual scar, and often needs to be followed by a skin graft. Removal is not allowed under the National Health Service unless there is some medical reason: for example, allergic reactions to it. Other methods of removal are by CRYOSURGERY, DERMABRASION and laser surgery. These, too, must only be carried out under skilled medical supervision.

In order to reduce the health hazards, tattooists – along with acupuncturists, cosmetic skinpiercers and hair electrolysers – are required by UK legislation to register their premises with health and local authorities before starting business. The practitioners have to satisfy the authorities that adequate precautions have been taken to prevent the transmission of infections.... tattooing

Examination of the bronchi, which are the main airways of the lungs, by means of an endoscope known as a bronchoscope. There are 2 types of bronchoscope: rigid and flexible. The rigid type is a hollow viewing tube that is passed into the bronchi via the mouth and requires anaesthesia. The flexible fibre-optic endoscope (a narrower tube formed from light-transmitting fibres) can be inserted through either the mouth or nose. It can reach farther into the lungs and requires only a mild sedative and/or local anaesthesia.

Bronchoscopy is performed to inspect the bronchi for abnormalities, such as lung cancer and tuberculosis, to collect samples of mucus, to obtain cells, and for taking biopsy specimens from the airways or samples of lung tissue. Bronchoscopy is used in treatments such as removing inhaled foreign bodies, destroying abnormal growths, and sealing off damaged blood vessels. The last 2 are carried out by laser treatment, diathermy, or cryosurgery by means of bronchoscope attachments.... bronchoscopy

A condition affecting the cervix in which a layer of mucusforming cells more characteristic of those found in the inner lining of the cervix appear on its outside surface. The eroded cervix has a fragile, reddened area on the surface. Usually, there are no symptoms, but some women experience bleeding at unexpected times and may have a vaginal discharge.

Cervical erosion may be present from birth. Other causes include injury to the cervix during labour and long-term use of oral contraceptives. The condition is often detected during a routine cervical smear test.

Only women who have symptoms need treatment.

Abnormal tissue may be destroyed using cauterization, cryosurgery, diathermy, or laser treatment.... cervical erosion

One of the most common cancers affecting women worldwide. Cancer of the cervix has well-defined precancerous stages (see cervical dysplasia) that can be detected by a cervical smear test, allowing, in many cases, early treatment and a complete cure. Untreated, cancer of the cervix may spread to the organs in the pelvis.

There are 2 main types of cervical cancer: the squamous type is the most common and is thought to be associated with the human papilloma virus, acquired during sexual intercourse. Factors that predispose to this type of cancer are smoking, starting to have sex at an early age, and having many sexual partners.

The second, rarer, type of cervical cancer, adenocarcinoma, sometimes occurs in women who have never had sexual intercourse. Its causes are unclear.

Symptoms do not develop until the condition is advanced, when there is vaginal bleeding or a bloodstained discharge at unexpected times, and pain if the cancer has spread within the pelvis.

Following an abnormal smear test result, colposcopy or a cone biopsy may be carried out to diagnose the condition.

A localized early cancer may be destroyed by electrocoagulation, diathermy, laser treatment, or cryosurgery.

If the cancer has spread into the cervical canal, a cone biopsy may be sufficient to remove all the diseased tissue.

In more advanced cases affecting the pelvic organs, radiotherapy may be given.

Radical surgery, in which the bladder, vagina, cervix, uterus, and rectum are removed, may be recommended in certain cases.... cervix, cancer of

A common, noncancerous skin tumour that develops on exposed areas after minor injury. It can be removed surgically, by electrocautery, or by cryosurgery.... pyogenic granuloma

Fleshy, painless, usually soft lumps that grow in and around the entrance of the vagina, around the anus, and on the penis. Genital warts are transmitted by sexual contact and are caused by a papillomavirus. There may be an interval of from a few weeks up to 18 months between time of infection and the appearance of the warts.

Genital warts have been linked with the development of cervical cancer (see cervix, cancer of).

They may be removed by cryosurgery or by the application of the drug podophyllin, but there is a tendency for them to recur.... warts, genital

n. see cryosurgery.... cryoprobe

n. the use of extreme cold to freeze areas of weak or torn retina in order to cause scarring and seal breaks. It is used in *cryosurgery for *retinal detachment and also in certain other ischaemic conditions of the retina (e.g. diabetic retinopathy).... cryoretinopexy

Tumours of the eye are rare. When eye tumours do occur, they are usually cancerous and painless.

Retinoblastoma is a cancerous tumour of the retina that occurs in one or both eyes and most often affects children. It may be treated by radiotherapy, laser treatment, or cryosurgery, but the eye may have to be removed to prevent spread of the tumour.

Malignant melanoma is a cancer of the choroid. It usually affects older people. There are no symptoms in the early stages, but it eventually causes retinal detachment and distortion of vision. Small tumours can be treated by laser, but the eye may need to be removed to avoid spread of the tumour.

Secondary eye tumours occur when cancer elsewhere in the body spreads to the eye. Symptoms depend on the tumour’s location and growth rate. It may be controlled by radiotherapy.

Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of tumour affecting the eyelid. It usually has a crusty central crater and a rolled edge. In the early stages, treatment may be possible by surgery, radiotherapy, or cryosurgery.... eye tumours

Swollen veins in the lining of the anus. Sometimes these veins protrude outside the anal canal, in which case they are called prolapsing haemorrhoids. Straining repeatedly to pass hard faeces is one of the main causes of haemorrhoids. Haemorrhoids are also common during pregnancy and just after childbirth.

Rectal bleeding and discomfort on defaecation are the most common features. Prolapsing haemorrhoids often produce a mucous discharge and itching around the anus. A complication of prolapse is thrombosis and strangulation; this can cause extreme pain.

Diagnosis is usually by proctoscopy. Mild cases are controlled by drinking plenty of fluids, eating a high-fibre diet, and establishing regular toilet habits. Rectal suppositories and creams containing corticosteroid drugs and local anaesthetics reduce pain and swelling. More troublesome haemorrhoids may be treated by sclerotherapy, cryosurgery, or by banding, in which a band is tied around the haemorrhoid, causing it to wither and drop off. A haemorrhoidectomy is generally required for prolapsing haemorrhoids.... haemorrhoids

A common, contagious, harmless growth that occurs on the skin or mucous membranes. Only the topmost layer of skin is affected. An overgrowth of cells in this layer causes a visible lump to develop. Warts are caused by the human papillomavirus, of which at least 30 different types are known. These cause different types of warts at various sites, such as on the hands or genitals.

Flat warts are flesh-coloured, sometimes itchy lumps with flat tops that occur mainly on the wrists, backs of hands, and face. About 50 per cent of warts disappear in 6–12 months without treatment. However, genital warts should be treated promptly. Common, flat, and plantar warts can sometimes be destroyed using a wart-removing liquid or special plaster. Several treatments may be necessary, and sometimes the wart returns. Warts are commonly treated by cryosurgery.

wart, plantar A hard, horny, and roughsurfaced area on the sole of the foot caused by a virus called a papillomavirus. Plantar warts, also known as verrucas, may occur singly or in clusters. The wart is flattened and forced into the skin and may cause discomfort or pain when walking. Infection is usually acquired from contaminated floors in swimming pools and communal showers.

Many plantar warts disappear without treatment, but some persist for years or recur. They can be removed by cryosurgery or by applying plasters or gel containing salicylic acid.... wart

(detached retina) separation of the inner nervous layer of the *retina from the outer pigmented layer (retinal pigment epithelium, RPE). It commonly occurs when a break (hole or tear) allows fluid from the vitreous cavity of the eyeball to accumulate under the retina (rhegmatogenous) but can also occur when fluid accumulates by leakage from the RPE (nonrhegmatogenous). Vision is lost in the affected part of the retina. The retina can be reattached by surgical means, such as external *plombage or internal *vitrectomy, or by creating patches of scar tissue between the retina and the choroid by application of extreme cold (see cryosurgery) or heat (see photocoagulation).... retinal detachment