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Definition

noun, plural: tracheotomies

A surgical procedure of making an incision through the neck into the trachea to make an artificial stoma for breathing.

Supplement

Tracheotomy is an old surgical procedure, originally done on individuals who have difficulty in breathing or are suffocating due to throat inflammation or upper airway obstruction. Presently, the technique is used to insert a tracheotomy tube to assist breathing.

Word origin: trachea + from the Greek root tom- meaning "to cut".

Compare: tracheostomy

Related terms:

• tracheotomy stoma
• tracheotomy tube