anaesthesia

[ an-uh s-thee-zhuh ]
/ ˌæn əsˈθi ʒə /

noun Medicine/Medical, Pathology.

OTHER WORDS FROM anaesthesia

an·aes·thet·ic [an-uh s-thet-ik] /ˌæn əsˈθɛt ɪk/, adjective, noun an·aes·the·tist [uh-nes-thi-tist or, esp. British, uh-nees-] /əˈnɛs θɪ tɪst or, esp. British, əˈnis-/, noun sem·i·an·aes·thet·ic, adjective

Definition for anaesthesia (2 of 2)

anesthesia

or an·aes·the·sia

[ an-uh s-thee-zhuh ]
/ ˌæn əsˈθi ʒə /

noun

Medicine/Medical. general or local insensibility, as to pain and other sensation, induced by certain interventions or drugs to permit the performance of surgery or other painful procedures.
Pathology. general loss of the senses of feeling, as pain, heat, cold, touch, and other less common varieties of sensation.
Psychiatry. absence of sensation due to psychological processes, as in conversion disorders.

Origin of anesthesia

1715–25; < New Latin < Greek anaisthēsía want of feeling. See an-1, esthesia

Example sentences from the Web for anaesthesia

British Dictionary definitions for anaesthesia (1 of 2)

anaesthesia

US anesthesia

/ (ˌænɪsˈθiːzɪə) /

noun

local or general loss of bodily sensation, esp of touch, as the result of nerve damage or other abnormality
loss of sensation, esp of pain, induced by drugs: called general anaesthesia when consciousness is lost and local anaesthesia when only a specific area of the body is involved
a general dullness or lack of feeling

Word Origin for anaesthesia

C19: from New Latin, from Greek anaisthēsia absence of sensation, from an- + aisthēsis feeling

British Dictionary definitions for anaesthesia (2 of 2)

anesthesia
/ (ˌænɪsˈθiːzɪə) /

noun

the usual US spelling of anaesthesia

Medical definitions for anaesthesia

anesthesia
[ ăn′ĭs-thēzhə ]

n.

Total or partial loss of sensation, especially tactile sensibility, induced by disease, injury, acupuncture, or an anesthetic.
Local or general insensibility to pain with or without the loss of consciousness, induced by an anesthetic.
A drug that induces partial or total loss of sensation and may be topical, local, regional, or general, depending on the method of administration and area of the body affected.

Scientific definitions for anaesthesia

anesthesia
[ ăn′ĭs-thēzhə ]

Total or partial loss of sensation to touch or pain, caused by nerve injury or disease, or induced intentionally, especially by the administration of anesthetic drugs, to provide medical treatment. The first public use of ether to anesthetize a patient in Boston in 1846 initiated widespread acceptance of anesthetics in the Western world for surgical procedures and obstetrics. General anesthesia, administered as inhalation or intravenous agents, acts primarily on the brain, resulting in a temporary loss of consciousness. Regional or local anesthesia affects sensation in a specific anatomic area, and includes topical application of local anesthetics, blocking of peripheral nerves, spinal anesthesia, and epidural anesthesia, which is used commonly during childbirth.

Cultural definitions for anaesthesia

anesthesia
[ (an-is-thee-zhuh) ]

Loss of sensation or consciousness. Anesthesia can be induced by an anesthetic, by acupuncture, or as the result of injury or disease.