Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The connection of separate parts of a branching system to form a network, as of leaf veins, blood vessels, or a river and its branches.
  • noun Medicine The surgical connection of separate or severed tubular hollow organs to form a continuous channel, as between two parts of the intestine.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In surgery, the establishment of communication between two canals or two portions of the same canal, usually the digestive tract, not previously in continuity.
  • noun In zoology and anatomy, the union, intercommunication, or inosculation of vessels of any system with one another, or with vessels of another system, as the arteries, veins, and lymphatics. In surgery, after ligation of an artery, collateral circulation is established by arterial anastomosis.
  • noun The interlacing or network of any branched system, as the veins of leaves or the nervures of insects' wings. See cut under venation.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Anat. & Bot.) The inosculation of vessels, or intercommunication between two or more vessels or nerves, as the cross communication between arteries or veins.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun a cross-connection between two blood vessels
  • noun an interconnection between any two channels, passages or vessels
  • noun medicine the surgical creation of a connecting passage between blood vessels or other channels

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a natural or surgical joining of parts or branches of tubular structures so as to make or become continuous

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Late Latin anastomōsis, from Greek, outlet, from anastomoun, to furnish with a mouth : ana-, ana- + stoma, mouth.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Ancient Greek ἀναστόμωσις, from ἀναστομόω ("furnish with a mouth or outlet").

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Examples

  • The latero-lateral anastomosis is performed by placing two vessels parallel to one another and opening them longitudinally by incision or resection of an elliptic flap.

    Alexis Carrel - Nobel Lecture 1967

  • The termino-terminal anastomosis is effected by bringing the extremities of the vessels into contact, no traction being necessary.

    Alexis Carrel - Nobel Lecture 1967

  • The anastomosis is performed with round, straight Kirby needles.

    Alexis Carrel - Nobel Lecture 1967

  • A technical word is wanting to designate the phenomenon mentioned in the text, and there is no valid objection to the employment of the anatomical term anastomosis for this purpose.

    Earth as Modified by Human Action, The~ Chapter 04 (historical) 1874

  • There still is a potential for leaks, there is potential for a disruption of the anastomosis, meaning a breakdown of that connection.

    KFDM.com Breaking News : News 2009

  • A technical word is wanting to designate the phenomenon mentioned in the text, and there is no valid objection to the employment of the anatomical term anastomosis for this purpose.]

    The Earth as Modified by Human Action George P. Marsh 1841

  • Major adverse events following surgery, some necessitating reoperation, included anastomosis leakage, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, band slippage and band erosion.

    Dr. Sharma’s Obesity Notes » Blog Archive » UK Report Confirms Cost-Effectiveness of Bariatric Surgery 2009

  • The end-to-end anastomosis he cited certainly sounded like a desperate improvisation: attempting to circumvent her blocked digestive tract by taking a lower, cleared loop of bowel and hooking it up to her stomach.

    A Happy Marriage Rafael Yglesias 2009

  • The end-to-end anastomosis he cited certainly sounded like a desperate improvisation: attempting to circumvent her blocked digestive tract by taking a lower, cleared loop of bowel and hooking it up to her stomach.

    A Happy Marriage Rafael Yglesias 2009

  • The end-to-end anastomosis he cited certainly sounded like a desperate improvisation: attempting to circumvent her blocked digestive tract by taking a lower, cleared loop of bowel and hooking it up to her stomach.

    A Happy Marriage Rafael Yglesias 2009

Comments

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  • the bird's nest building in China, built for the Olympics 2008, used this form of joining parts to build the structure.

    June 17, 2009