pre-opadj.n.
/ˌpriːˈɒp/, U.S. /ˈpriˌɑp/ colloquial.
A. adj.
1. = preoperative adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > surgery > [adjective] > relating to operation > before operation
preoperative1886
pre-op1914
pre-operation1928
1914 Trans. Amer. Gynecol. Soc. 39 79 Pre-op. diag.—Ovarian cyst with twisted pedicle.
1918 Scribner's Mag. May 600/1 In the so-called pre-op-room, which is kept warm, the patient is cleaned up.
1933 S. Kingsley Men in White i. i. 23 I was kind of worried about that preop insulin.
1956 K. Hulme Nun's Story x. 162 All pre-op medication given.
1992 Time 20 Apr. 94/3 The lowly medical student who has dared to offer a pre-op suggestion.
2005 I. McEwan Saturday iv. 249 Blood pressure and pulse are OK. And pre-op bloods are fine, airway pressure's fine... We're ready to roll, boss.
2. spec. Of a transsexual: awaiting or not having had a surgical sex change.
ΚΠ
1976 D. H. Feinbloom Transvestites & Transsexuals vii. 165 I don't want to be thought of as a ‘pre-op’ transsexual, or a ‘homo in drag’.
1986 Los Angeles Times 19 Jan. (Calendar section) 85/1 A..call for models: ‘physical prodigies of all kinds,..dwarfs, giants,..pre-op transsexuals, bearded women, active or retired sideshow performers..etc.’
1993 M. Garber in H. Abelove et al. Lesbian & Gay Stud. Reader xxi. 332 The term ‘transsexual’ is used to describe persons who are either ‘pre-op’ or ‘post-op’—that is, whether or not they have undergone penectomy, hysterectomy, phallo- or vaginoplasty.
2005 Runner's World (Nexis) 1 June 106 She was still a pre-op, anatomically male transsexual; nothing below the neck had been surgically altered.
B. n.
1. A treatment or procedure performed or a medication given before a surgical operation; (also) a series of pre-operative checks.
ΚΠ
1971 AORN Jrnl. 14 v. 66 (heading) Preops—a communication technic... Our staff proposed to the hospital administration the inception of preoperative visits to each patient scheduled for surgery.
1976 ‘R. Gordon’ Doctor on Job iv. 34 The razor's a bit ropey. It's the one they use for the ward preops.
1989 R. Hitchcock Fighting Cancer (BNC) 20 I was given my pre-op by a ‘bank nurse’.
2011 K. C. Kellogg Challenging Operations v. 101 Pre-ops (checking paperwork on patients scheduled to go to the or the next day and ordering any necessary additional tests).
2. A ward or area in a hospital for patients awaiting surgery.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > places for the sick or injured > [noun] > hospital or infirmary > hospital ward > types of ward
foul ward1734
day ward1801
eye ward1828
casualty ward1836
scarlet ward1888
out-ward1890
observation ward1908
open ward1919
casualty1927
post-op1929
Nightingale ward1930
private1942
surgical1961
SCBU1968
NICU1971
pre-op1991
1991 J. Phillips You'll never eat Lunch in this Town Again 564 Michael and I accompany her to pre-op. It is the worst twenty minutes to spend with your child.
2000 M. Ondaatje Anil's Ghost 246 When she was not wearing a mask, in pre-op, he had probably only glanced at her.
2010 C. Protzman et al. Leveraging Lean in Healthcare xv. 245 What happens if a surgeon..needs a patient who is not in Pre-Op? There is no more room in Pre-Op and the surgeon will have to wait.
3. A transsexual who is awaiting or has not had a surgical sex change.
ΚΠ
1991 N. Dakota Q. Summer 34 She took him down to..lower Manhattan to see the preoperative transvestites..the 'pre-ops' as she called them,..strutting along 12th Avenue.
1996 Performing Arts Jrnl. 18 79/1 The ideal figure of Venus as a pre-op transsexual...Another gorgeous pre-op ushers her into existence.
2005 Time Out N.Y. 6 Oct. 21/3 Roberta Close..is by far the most famous of her homeland's travestis, having won the title of Miss Gay Brazil while still a pre-op.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1914