What is the definition or description of: spleen removal?

Splenectomy: The spleen plays a vital role in immune function & removal of old blood cells. It is also very prone to injury, sometimes necessitating emergency surgery to remove the spleen. Rarely, the spleen is removed to rx a low-platelet disease, itp. In that setting, the spleen can usually be removed via laparoscopic surgery. After splenectomy, one is prone to certain infections, requiring immunization.

Splenectomy: Removal of the spleen is a surgical procedure to remove the spleen, which is eseentially a large lymph node in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. It is typicall performed using small incisions (laparoscopy), but the exact technique depends on the size of the spleen. It is also possible to achieve the same results with splenic embolization (non-surgical) in some cases.