Fundoplication

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A surgical technique entails the encircling of the top section of the stomach around the base of the esophagus to impede acid reflux
2. This approach aims to alleviate gastroesophageal reflux by reinforcing the barrier that prevents stomach acids from entering the esophagus
3. A medical procedure involves wrapping the upper part of the stomach around the lower esophagus to prevent acid from backing up into the throat

Etymology: "Fundoplication" is a technical coinage built from two Latin words: "fundus", meaning the bottom or base of something, and "plicatio", a folding, from "plicare", to fold. The sense of "fundus" here is the stomach's upper portion, the part that lies at the top of the stomach, and the surgery folds that section around the lower end of the oesophagus to tighten it. The word is therefore a compound describing the procedure itself: a fold made at the fundus. Its parts are transparent, but the combination is a modern medical term rather than a classical one, so the ancient Latin writers had no such word or operation in mind. The term was built from classical roots to name a surgical technique, not inherited from them.