Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Cauterization \Cau`ter*i*za"tion\, n. [Cf. F. caut[`e]risation.]
   (Med.)
   The act of searing some morbid part by the application of a
   cautery or caustic; also, the effect of such application.

Source : WordNet®

cauterization
     n : the act of coagulating blood and destroying tissue with a
         hot iron or caustic agent or by freezing [syn: {cautery},
          {cauterisation}]