Surgery
Surgery (from the Greek: χειρουργική
cheirourgikē (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via Latin:
chirurgiae, meaning "hand work") is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance. An act of performing surgery may be called a
surgical procedure,
operation, or simply
surgery. In this context, the verb
operate means to perform surgery. The adjective
surgical means pertaining to surgery; e.g. surgical instruments or surgical nurse. The patient or subject on which the surgery is performed can be a person or an animal. A surgeon is a person who practises surgery. Persons described as surgeons are commonly physicians, but the term is also applied to podiatrists, dentists (known as oral and maxillofacial surgeons) and veterinarians. A surgery can last from minutes to hours, but is typically not an ongoing or periodic type of treatment.