Webster's New World Medical Dictionary

catheter, Swan-Ganz
A style of oximetry
catheter that is inserted into a major vein under the
collarbone or in the neck, threaded through the
right side of the heart, and then threaded into the
pulmonary artery. Physicians can use monitoring
equipment with a Swan-Ganz catheter to measure
blood pressure inside the heart and to find out how
much blood the heart is pumping.
cathexis
In psychiatry, the concentration of psy-
chic energy on an idea.
cauda equina
A bundle of spinal nerve roots that
arise from the end of the spinal cord. The cauda
equina comprises the roots of all the spinal nerves
below the first lumbar (L1) vertebra in the lower
back.
cauda equina syndrome
Impairment of the
nerves in the cauda equina, characterized by dull
pain in the lower back and upper buttocks and lack
of feeling (analgesia) in the buttocks, genitalia, and
thigh, together with disturbances of bowel and blad-
der function.
caudad
Toward or of the feet or tail. The opposite
of cranial. See also Appendix B, “Anatomic
Orientation Terms.”
caudal 1
An anatomic term pertaining to, situ-
ated in, or directed toward the tail or the hind part.
2
Inferior to another structure, in the sense of being
below it.
73
caudal
04_189283 ch03.qxp 4/18/08 10:14 PM Page 73
http://www.rashidislamiccenter.com
http://www.allofislam.com/

---

caudal anesthesia
Anesthesia produced by
injection of a local anesthetic into the caudal canal,
the sacral portion of the spinal canal. Caudal anes-
thesia is used to provide anesthesia and analgesia
(pain relief) below the umbilicus. It may be the sole
anesthetic or combined with general anesthesia.
Also known as caudal epidural anesthesia or a cau-
dal block.