Lobotomy

Lobotomy 1949

Brain animation: left frontal lobe highlighted in red. Moniz targeted the frontal lobes in the leucotomy procedure he first conceived in 1933.

The Swiss psychiatrist Gottlieb Burckhardt (1836–1907)

Insulin shock therapy administered in Helsinki in the 1950s.

Site of borehole for the standard pre-frontal lobotomy/leucotomy operation as developed by Freeman and Watts

Lobotomy, also known as leucotomy or frontal lobotomy, is a controversial and largely discredited surgical procedure that involves severing one or more branches of nerves in the frontal lobe of the brain. The procedure was initially developed as a treatment for severe psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and severe depression, but has since been abandoned due to its negative effects on patients and the development of more effective treatments.

History

The lobotomy was first introduced in the 1930s by Portuguese neurologist Egas Moniz and later popularized in the United States by psychiatrist Walter Freeman. Moniz was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1949 for his work on the lobotomy, which was considered groundbreaking at the time.

Procedure

The lobotomy procedure involved cutting into the skull and removing or damaging specific areas of the frontal lobes, with the goal of altering brain function to alleviate symptoms of mental illness. The procedure was performed using a variety of techniques, including the prefrontal lobotomy, in which a small hole was drilled into the skull, and the transorbital lobotomy, in which an instrument was inserted through the eye socket to sever connections in the brain.

Controversy and decline

The lobotomy quickly became a controversial procedure due to the severe side effects it often produced, such as personality changes, emotional blunting, cognitive impairment, and in some cases, severe brain damage. Additionally, many patients who underwent the procedure did not experience significant improvements in their mental health symptoms.

The use of lobotomies began to decline in the 1950s as alternative treatments for mental illness, such as psychiatric medications and psychotherapy, were developed and gained widespread acceptance. By the 1970s, the procedure had been largely abandoned by the medical community, and it is now considered an unethical and harmful form of treatment.

Legacy

The history of the lobotomy serves as a cautionary tale in the field of psychiatry and neuroscience, illustrating the potential dangers of experimental treatments and the importance of rigorous scientific evaluation before widespread adoption. The lobotomy also highlights the ongoing ethical challenges faced by medical professionals as they work to develop new treatments for mental illnesses.

See also

• Egas Moniz
• Walter Freeman
• History of psychiatry
• Neurosurgery
• Ethics in medicine

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