What does cannulated mean?
"Cannulated" is a largely technical adjective meaning hollowed out or possessing a channel through its centre. Its dominant use today lies in orthopaedic and general surgery, where "cannulated screws", "nails", and drills are manufactured with a central bore so they can be threaded over a guidewire, allowing surgeons to place hardware along a precisely drilled path before removing the wire. The term derives from "cannula", a small tube borrowed from Latin "canna", meaning reed or cane — the same root that gives us "canal" and even "cannon". Outside medicine, "cannulated" occasionally appears in anatomical descriptions of naturally hollow structures such as certain bones or plant stems, and in engineering contexts for tubes and shafts with internal channels. Because it belongs to specialised registers, the word rarely surfaces in casual conversation, yet within its field it is indispensable, signalling a design feature rather than a mere state of being empty: a cannulated device is deliberately engineered with a passageway to serve a specific function.
Having a hollow interior or a channel running through it; constructed with a tubular cavity, especially in reference to surgical implants and instruments designed to pass over a guidewire.
"The fracture was secured with a cannulated screw placed over a guide pin."
Most frequently encountered in orthopaedic surgery and medical device descriptions.
Past tense and past participle of 'cannulate': to have inserted a cannula into, or to have provided with a tubular channel.
"The vessel was successfully cannulated during the procedure."
This verbal use is confined to clinical and laboratory contexts.
A cannulated screw is drilled through its own middle so it can slide down a wire — a hole inside the very thing holding your bone together.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of cannulated
"Cannulated" comes from the Latin "cannula", a diminutive of "canna" meaning reed, cane, or tube — the same root behind English "cane", "canal", and "cannon". The adjective formed on the verb "cannulate", to insert a cannula or create a tubular passage, which entered English medical vocabulary in the nineteenth century as surgical technique advanced. Its cognates thus all trace back to the image of a hollow reed.
Related word forms
How cannulated is actually used
Primarily a technical term used in orthopaedic surgery, medical device literature, and anatomy; rare in everyday speech. It is the adjectival form of the verb 'cannulate'. In non-medical contexts it may simply describe anything bored or hollowed out, but this broader use is uncommon.
Easily confused with cannulated
'Canned' refers to food preserved in a sealed container, while 'cannulated' describes something having a hollow channel through it, chiefly in surgery.