What does peritoneally mean?
Peritoneally is an adverb meaning in or through the peritoneum. The peritoneum is a membrane that lines the abdominal cavity and covers many of the organs within it. The word is used chiefly in medicine and surgery, especially when describing how a drug, fluid, or medical procedure is delivered. For example, medicine may be administered peritoneally, meaning it is introduced into the peritoneal cavity or through the lining surrounding it. The term is specialized and is less likely to appear in ordinary conversation than the related adjective peritoneal or noun peritoneum. Its formation reflects the word peritoneum with the standard adverbial suffix -ally.
adverbIn or through the peritoneum, the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity.
- In or through the peritoneum.
"The medication was administered peritoneally for rapid absorption."
"The solution was introduced peritoneally during the surgical procedure."
"Peritoneal dialysis is a method of filtering waste from the blood into the abdominal cavity."
Peritoneally means that medicine or a procedure is taking place through the peritoneum, the body's abdominal lining.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does peritoneally come from?
Peritoneally derives from peritoneum, the anatomical term for the membrane lining the abdominal cavity. Peritoneum comes through Latin from Greek peritonaion, formed from the roots peri-, meaning around, and tonos, meaning stretching or tension. The adverbial form was created by adding the English suffix -ally to the related adjective peritoneal.
Related word forms
How peritoneally is actually used
This is a specialized medical adverb, usually used in clinical or surgical contexts. It is related to the adjective peritoneal, but is less common in general usage.