fistula

[ fis-choo-luh ]

noun,plural fis·tu·las, fis·tu·lae [fis-choo-lee]. /ˈfɪs tʃʊˌli/.
  1. Pathology. a narrow passage or duct formed by disease or injury, as one leading from an abscess to a free surface, or from one cavity to another.

  2. Surgery. an opening made into a hollow organ, as the bladder or eyeball, for drainage.

  1. Veterinary Pathology. any of various suppurative inflammations, as in the withers of a horse (fistulous withers ), characterized by the formation of passages or sinuses through the tissues and to the surface of the skin.

  2. Obsolete. a pipe, as a flute.

Origin of fistula

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin: “pipe, tube,” of uncertain origin

Words Nearby fistula

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How to use fistula in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fistula

fistula

/ (ˈfɪstjʊlə) /


nounplural -las or -lae (-ˌliː)
  1. pathol an abnormal opening between one hollow organ and another or between a hollow organ and the surface of the skin, caused by ulceration, congenital malformation, etc

  2. obsolete any musical wind instrument; a pipe

Origin of fistula

1
C14: from Latin: pipe, tube, hollow reed, ulcer

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012