Surgical Technology Procedures: Plastic Reconstructive Surgery

Vocabulary terms and definitions related to plastic and reconstructive surgical procedures, equipment, and medical conditions.

Surgical Objectives of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

To restore function lost because of trauma, disease, or a congenital anomaly and to produce a physical outcome that is aesthetically acceptable within the individual’s cultural and social environment.

Povidone-iodine

A solution used to prep the skin for surgical procedures, the specific dilution of which is ordered by the surgeon.

Chlorhexidine Gluconate (CHG)

A prep solution also known as Chloraprep used in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Head drape

A specific type of drape used by most surgeons for procedures involving the face.

Impervious pocket drape

A drape applied to collect and isolate runoff whenever large amounts of solution are required, such as during debridement.

Dermatome

A surgical instrument used to produce thin slices of skin from a donor site for use in skin grafting.

Abdominoplasty

A surgical procedure that restores muscle anatomy and allows for skin to be resected and reattached; it is most likely to be done in combination with a panniculectomy.

Stent dressing

A dressing held by crisscrossing long suture ends and tying them, very commonly used as a dressing for skin graft recipient sites.

Rhytidectomy

The medical term for a facelift.

Basal cell

The most common type of skin cancer.

Debridement

The name for the process of removing nonviable tissue from a nonhealing or traumatized wound area.

TRAM flap

A reconstructive procedure where TRAM stands for Transverse Rectus Abdominis Muscle.

Melanoma

The most aggressive type of skin cancer.

Keloid

A raised, thickened scar caused by excess collagen formation.

Candela dye or Q-switched laser

Types of lasers used to perform tattoo removal.

Malar implants

Implants that are inserted into the cheeks.

Reduction mammoplasty

The proper medical term for breast reduction.

Blepharoplasty

A procedure performed to remove excess fat deposits and skin from the eyelids.

Microtia

The medical term that refers to the absence of the external ear.

Syndactyly

The medical term that refers to the webbing of the digits of the hands or feet.