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: washing
especially
: the therapeutic washing out of an organ or part
Examples of lavage in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
That test, called a bronchoalveolar lavage, was done 10 days later.
—Lisa Sanders, M.d., New York Times, 16 May 2024
Ductal lavage flushes out cells from the breast’s milk ducts, where breast cancer often originates, so that they may be analyzed for abnormalities that suggest an elevated risk of the disease.
—Margalit Fox, New York Times, 3 July 2023
Postoperative care was reduced to nasal lavage with topical steroids for 3 to 6 weeks.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 9 Jan. 2017
Endoscopic view of one day after 3 L of cola lavage.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 18 Oct. 2013
Jimenez was also able to work remotely from Hotel Influenza, taking meetings in between the occasional blood draw and nasal lavage.
—Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 24 May 2022
Gastric lavage — Otherwise known as stomach pumping.
—Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 May 2022
Doctors collected samples of fluid from her lungs using what's known as a bronchoalveolar lavage, and tested that fluid for SARS-CoV-2.
—Kristen Jordan Shamus, USA TODAY, 24 Feb. 2021
For the study, health investigators collected bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples—that is fluid flushed into and then recollected from the lung through a tube inserted into the mouth or nose.
—Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 8 Nov. 2019
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Word History
Etymology
French, from Middle French, from laver to wash, from Latin lavare
First Known Use
circa 1895, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near lavage
Cite this Entry
“Lavage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lavage. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Medical Definition
lavage
1 of 2 noun
la·vage
lə-ˈväzh, British usually ˈlav-ij
: the act or action of washing
especially
: the therapeutic washing out of an organ or part
gastric lavage
lavage
2 of 2 transitive verb
lavaged; lavaging
1
: to wash or wash out therapeutically
lavaged the bladder with water
the incisions were lavaged with sterile saline
2
: to perform lavage on
she was intubated, lavaged, and received activated charcoal—R. Rasmussen & P. E. McKinney
More from Merriam-Webster on lavage
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about lavage
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