centesis

centesis

a surgical perforation or puncture.

See also: Surgery

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

centesis - (surgery) the act of puncturing a body cavity or organ with a hollow needle in order to draw out fluid puncture - the act of puncturing or perforating abdominocentesis, paracentesis - centesis of the belly to remove fluid for diagnosis amnio, amniocentesis - (pregnancy) extraction by centesis of amniotic fluid from a pregnant woman (after the 15th week of pregnancy) to aid in the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities arthrocentesis - removal of fluid from a joint by centesis celiocentesis - removal of fluid from the abdomen by centesis lumbar puncture, spinal puncture, spinal tap - removal by centesis of fluid from the subarachnoid space of the lumbar region of the spinal cord for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes thoracentesis, thoracocentesis - removal of fluid from the chest by centesis for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes surgery - the branch of medical science that treats disease or injury by operative procedures; "he is professor of surgery at the Harvard Medical School"