-ectomy, -ectome, -ectomize
(Greek: a suffix; cut, excise, surgical removal of)
2. Surgery performed on the skull where pieces of bone are removed to gain access to the brain and the bone pieces are not replaced.
The cricoid (from the Greek krikoeides, "ring-shaped") is the only complete ring of cartilage around the trachea which is a tube-like portion of the breathing or "respiratory" tract that connects the "voice box" (larynx) with the bronchial parts of the lungs.
The hypophysis is a pituitary gland which is a small oval shaped endocrine gland situated at the base of the brain in the fossa (depression) of the sphenoid bone.
The overall role of the hypophysis (pituitary gland) is to regulate growth and metabolism. The gland is divided into the posterior and anterior pituitary, each responsible for the production of its own unique hormones.
The globus pallidus consists of the sriped gray and white matter of the brain. It is located in front of and lateral to the thalamus in each cerebral hemisphere.
2. Excision of a cyst or bladder, usually the urinary bladder.
This term has also been used erroneously for the excision of a gallstone from the gallbladder.
Related cutting-word units: cast-; castrat-; -cise, -cide; mutil-; put-; sec-, seg-; temno-; -tomy; trunc-.
-Ectomy Word-Sources of Definitions