What does neurotomy mean?
Neurotomy is the surgical cutting or division of a nerve. It belongs to the vocabulary of operative medicine and may be performed to interrupt a nerve pathway, particularly when treating severe pain. Although neurotomy can describe the act of cutting a nerve more generally, it is often used with the anatomical nerve involved, as in “trigeminal neurotomy.” The term should not be confused with neurectomy, which entails removing nerve tissue, or neurolysis, which generally means freeing a nerve from scar tissue or other compression. Neurotomy is not a common word outside medical and historical contexts, but its components make its meaning relatively transparent: the Greek-derived neuro- element refers to nerves, while -tomy denotes cutting. For general readers, it is chiefly notable as a precise term for a nerve-cutting surgical procedure.
nounAn operation involving the incision or division of a nerve, usually to interrupt the transmission of nerve impulses.
- The surgical incision or division of a nerve.
"The surgeon performed a neurotomy to relieve persistent facial pain."
"The pain specialist recommended a trigeminal neurotomy after other treatments proved ineffective."
"In historical accounts of the procedure, neurotomy was described as an experimental form of nerve surgery."
The plural is used when referring to multiple nerve-division operations.
"The text compares two neurotomy techniques used in facial pain management."
The name joins neuro- (“nerve”) and -tomy (“cutting”): literally, surgery that cuts a nerve.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does neurotomy come from?
Neurotomy combines the Greek neuron, meaning “nerve,” with the combining form -tomy, derived from Greek tome, meaning “a cutting.” The two elements literally express the cutting or division of a nerve. Its history is part of the broader development of medical terminology based on classical Greek roots.
Related word forms
How neurotomy is actually used
This is a specialized medical term, used chiefly by surgeons and in clinical literature. It is distinct from procedures that free, repair, or entirely remove a nerve.
Easily confused with neurotomy
Neurotomy involves incising or dividing a nerve, whereas neurectomy surgically removes a portion or all of a nerve.