What does autoplasty mean?
Autoplasty is a surgical procedure in which damaged, diseased, or missing tissue is repaired or reconstructed using tissue transplanted from elsewhere on the same patient's body. The prefix comes from the Greek 'autos,' meaning 'self,' so the term literally describes self-repair at the surgeon's hands. Because the donor and recipient are the same individual, autoplasty avoids the immunological problems of rejection that complicate transplants between people, which is why it has long been a cornerstone of reconstructive and plastic surgery — used for skin grafts on burn victims, bone repairs, and nerve reconstruction, among other applications. The adjective form is 'autoplastic.' Autoplasty stands in contrast to alloplasty, which employs artificial materials such as metal or silicone, and to procedures using tissue from other donors. It is a formal medical term, encountered mainly in surgical literature and clinical settings rather than everyday conversation.
nounSurgical repair or reconstruction of a body part using tissue taken from the patient's own body.
- The surgical technique of repairing or reconstructing damaged or missing tissue by transferring tissue from one part of a patient's body to another.
"The surgeon preferred autoplasty over synthetic implants because tissue taken from the patient carries far less risk of rejection."
"Because the skin graft was an autoplasty, drawn from the patient's own thigh, her body accepted it without complication."
"Nineteenth-century surgeons pioneered autoplasty techniques for repairing cleft palates using flaps of the patient's own mucosal tissue."
Standard plural, formed regularly with '-ies'; used when referring to multiple instances of the procedure.
"Over his career the surgeon performed hundreds of autoplasties, most involving skin and bone grafts."
In autoplasty, your body is both the patient and the donor — the surgeon borrows from you to rebuild you.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of autoplasty
Autoplasty derives from the Greek 'autos' ('self') combined with 'plastos' ('molded' or 'formed'), itself from the verb 'plassein,' meaning 'to mold or shape.' The combining form '-plasty' entered English medical vocabulary through modern Latin and became highly productive in surgical terminology during the nineteenth century, when reconstructive techniques advanced rapidly. It shares this root with words such as 'plastic,' 'protoplasm,' and 'plaster,' all ultimately traceable to the same Greek verb of shaping.
Related word forms
How autoplasty is actually used
A technical term used almost exclusively in medical and surgical contexts — in everyday speech, doctors are more likely to say 'autograft' or 'graft using the patient's own tissue.' It belongs to formal register.
Easily confused with autoplasty
Alloplasty uses inert foreign materials such as metal or plastic implants to repair a body part, whereas autoplasty uses the patient's own tissue.
Homoplasty involves transplanting tissue between individuals of the same species, while autoplasty transfers tissue within the same individual.