Webster's New World Medical Dictionary

lactation
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pelvis to be seen. A variety of probes or other instru-
ments can also be pushed through these small inci-
sions in the skin. In this way, a number of surgical
procedures can be performed without the need for
a large surgical incision.
laparotomy
An operation to open the abdomen.
For example, laparotomy is used to remove cancer
of the intestines or repair bowel blockage.
large cell carcinoma
A term used to describe a
microscopically identified variant of certain can-
cers, for example lung cancers, in which the abnor-
mal cells are particularly large.
large cell lymphoma
See 
lymphoma, large cell.
large intestine
See 
intestine, large.
laryngeal
Having to do with the larynx (voice box).
laryngeal nerve, recurrent
One of the
branches of the vagus nerve, a long and important
nerve that originates in the brain stem. After the
recurrent laryngeal nerve leaves the vagus nerve, it
goes down into the chest and then loops back up, to
supply nerves to the larynx (the voice box). It is said
to be recurrent because it returns in its course to
the larynx. See also 
laryngeal palsy.
laryngeal nerve palsy
See 
laryngeal palsy.
laryngeal palsy
Paralysis of the larynx (voice
box) that is caused by damage to the recurrent
laryngeal nerve, which supplies the larynx (voice
box), or its parent nerve, the vagus nerve, which
originates in the brain stem and runs down to the
colon. In laryngeal palsy, the larynx is paralyzed on
the side where the recurrent laryngeal nerve has
been damaged, unless the problem originated with
damage to the vagus nerve itself. Damage to the
recurrent laryngeal nerve can be the result of dis-
eases inside the chest, such as a tumor, an aneurysm
of the arch of the aorta, or an aneurysm of the left
atrium of the heart.