41. Surgical treatment PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR MEDICINE

PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR MEDICINE

41. Surgical treatment

A	The operating theatre Surgery is carried out in an operating theatre. Great care is taken to make sure that operations takes place in sterile conditions – free from microorganisms. The surgeon and his or her assistant wash or scrub up, and put on surgical gowns, masks, and gloves. The patient’s skin is prepared by disinfecting it with an antiseptic solution. This is known as prepping (preparing) the patient. They are then covered with sterile drapes, so that only the area of the operation is exposed.
B	Instruments The most basic instruments are shown in the picture.
C	The operation The operation begins with the surgeon makes an incision or cut. Control of bleeding is very important. A swab is pad of cotton or other material used to soak up blood from the operation site. A sucker is a mechanical device which aspirates – sucks up – blood. Bleeding vessels are tied with ligatures or sealed by an electric current (diathermy). Drains may be inserted to carry away fluid which might act as a culture medium for bacteria. Various methods are used to close the wound, for example sutures (also known as stitches), or staples. Finally, the wound is covered with a dressing.
D	An operation report This patient had an indirect right inguinal hernia. Anaesthesia: Spinal anaesthetic with local anaesthetic infiltration Incision: Right inguinal

EXERCISES

41.1	Which of the instruments shows in B above is needed for each of the following procedures? 1 making an incision 2 keeping the sides of the wound open 3 cutting sutures 4 holding the cut ends of blood vessels before they are tied.
41.2	A surgeon is talking to a medical student about assisting at operations. Complete his advice using words A, B, and C above. An (1) ___________________ must be able to carry out the following tasks to help the surgeon. Firstly, he or she must help in (2) ___________________ the patient and putting the (3) ___________________ in place to provide (4) ___________________ conditions. Expert handling
41.3	Find words in C and D above with the following meanings. 1 cut into two parts 2 corrected (something that was damaged) 3 freed from surrounding tissues 4 removed by cutting out 5 spread of liquid into an area

Answer key