Which statement describes minor survival surgery?

Which statement describes minor survival surgery?

• A. Does not expose a body cavity and causes little or no physical impairment.
• B. Penetrates and exposes a body cavity and causes substantial impairment.
• C. Pain relief for minor procedures is mandatory.
• D. Euthanasia should be considered for minor procedures.

Answer: (A)

Minor survival surgery is defined by how invasive the procedure is: it does not open a body cavity and it causes little or no lasting impairment. That makes the statement describing no body cavity exposure with minimal impairment the best fit. In contrast, procedures that penetrate a body cavity are considered major survival surgery and can cause substantial impairment. While pain relief is important for any surgery and ethics require analgesia, that doesn’t define minor survival surgery, and euthanasia is not a standard consideration for minor procedures.

Minor survival surgery is defined by how invasive the procedure is: it does not open a body cavity and it causes little or no lasting impairment. That makes the statement describing no body cavity exposure with minimal impairment the best fit. In contrast, procedures that penetrate a body cavity are considered major survival surgery and can cause substantial impairment. While pain relief is important for any surgery and ethics require analgesia, that doesn’t define minor survival surgery, and euthanasia is not a standard consideration for minor procedures.