rectorectal
English
Etymology
recto- + rectal = recto- + rectum + -al
Adjective
rectorectal (not comparable)
- (anatomy) Relating to two parts of the rectum, as, for example, in a rectorectal intussusception, in which the two parts telescope together.
Usage notes
Do not confuse rectorectal ("among parts of the rectum") with retrorectal ("behind the rectum"), nor rectovaginal ("between the rectum and vagina") with retrovaginal ("behind the vagina"). Intussusceptions (which involve telescoping movement) may be rectorectal; fistulas (which are passages between spaces) may be rectovaginal; hematomas and hemorrhages (which fill up a space) may be retrorectal (i.e., presacral); tumors inside the rectovaginal septum may be retrovaginal. Mentions of *retrovaginal fistulas are virtually always malapropisms for rectovaginal fistulas.