technique

(tek-nēk′)

[Gr. technikos, pert. to an art, craft, or skill]

1. A systematic procedure or method by which an involved or scientific task is completed.
2. The skill in performing details of a procedure or operation.
3. In radiology, the various technical factors that must be determined to produce a diagnostic radiograph, e.g., kilovoltage, milliamperage, time of exposure, and source-image receptor distance.

Alexander technique

SEE: Alexander technique

aseptic technique

A method used in surgery to prevent contamination of the wound and operative site. All instruments used are sterilized, and physicians and nurses wear caps, masks, shoe coverings, sterile gowns, and gloves. The technique is adapted at the bedside, e.g., during procedures, and in emergency and treatment rooms.

bisecting angle technique

A dental radiographic technique that requires placement of the film as close as possible to the teeth, causing the film to rest against the crown; visualization of a bisector, which bisects the angle formed by the long axis of the teeth and the film; and positioning of the central ray perpendicular to the bisector. The image produced is distorted in a buccolingual direction.
SYN: SEE: short-cone technique
SEE: Cieszynski rule

Buteyko breathing technique

SEE: Buteyko breathing technique

compensatory technique

1. The use of modified procedures or assistive devices to enable the successful performance of tasks by persons with a disability.
2. Any altered pattern of movement in patients with limited mobility in which synergistic muscles are recruited and used to perform movements that would usually be performed by other muscle groups.

crossed-finger technique

A hazardous method of opening an unconscious patient's mouth by placing the thumb and index finger of a gloved hand on opposite rows of teeth and spreading the jaw open.

depilatory technique

Any of several procedures for the temporary removal of hair from the body, including shaving, plucking, chemicals, or hot wax. If chemical depilation is used, care must be taken to avoid skin irritation. The wax treatment involves application of molten wax, which is allowed to cool; then, when the wax is pulled away, the hair comes with it. Permanent depilation is accomplished by electrolysis of each hair follicle. This time-consuming process is done by an electrologist trained in the technique.
SEE: electrolysis; SEE: hirsutism

enzyme-multiplied immunoassay technique

ABBR: EMIT An enzyme immunoassay based on a mixture of analyte and enzyme substrate such that no immobile phase is necessary.
SEE: enzyme immunoassay; SEE: cloned enzyme donor immunoassay

forced expiratory technique

ABBR: FET The use of sudden exhalations to clear the airways of secretions.

forced oscillation technique

A noninvasive application of pressure fluctuations to the airway during normal tidal breathing, as by impulse oscillometry, used to diagnose diseases such as asthma. One example of FOT is impulse oscillometry.
SEE: impulse oscillometry

immunomagnetic technique

The use of magnetic microspheres to sort, isolate, or identify cells with specific antigenic markers.

long-cone technique

SEE: Paralleling technique.

minimal leak technique

ABBR: MLT A method of determining the appropriate cuff inflation volume on endotracheal tubes (ETT). The ETT cuff is inflated until no respiratory sounds are heard. The cuff is then deflated slightly until sounds are heard. Excessive cuff inflation volume may lead to necrosis of the trachea, and excessive leaking may render oxygenation and ventilation ineffective or allow aspiration of large particles from the oral cavity.

Mohs chemosurgery technique

SEE: Mohs chemosurgery technique

no-touch isolation technique

Surgery in which the organ being resected is left undisturbed but is removed en bloc by severing its connections to neighboring tissues. The technique is used in some cancer surgeries as a means of reducing the shedding of tumor cells into the circulation.

Papillon technique

A radiation therapy for rectal cancer in which the radiation source is placed directly into the distal bowel, in contact with the tumor.

paralleling technique

A dental radiographic technique that requires placement of the film parallel to the teeth and positioning of the central ray perpendicular to the teeth. The orientation of the film, teeth, and central ray produces a radiograph with minimal geometric distortion.
SYN: SEE: long-cone technique; SEE: right-angle technique

preclinical technique

In dentistry, the use of manikins, mechanical articulator, artificial or extracted teeth, and the dental instruments and materials to study and master the techniques of clinical dentistry.

projective technique

Any of several forms of psychological assessment or evaluation. The subject's comments about the results or products of ambiguous activities and tasks that encourage self-expression are evaluated and interpreted to determine indications of his unconscious needs, thoughts, or concerns.

push-bang technique

The elimination of a kidney stone from the proximal ureter by flushing it distally and then fragmenting it with lithotripsy.

right-angle technique