What is trepanation?
Trepanning, also known as trepanation, trephination, trephining or making a burr hole (the verb trepan derives from Old French from Medieval Latin trepanum from Greek trúpanon, literally “borer, auger”), is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drilled or scraped into the human skull.
What are the complications of trepanation?
The main complications that may arise from trephination include brain injury, hemorrhage, and infection (Ortner, 2003). It is noteworthy that although trephinations require great precision, success rates have been particularly high from prehistoric to modern times (Arnott et al., 2003; Moghaddam et al., 2015).
Why was trepanation used in prehistoric times?
According to the French physician Paul Broca, ancient physicians were quite familiar with trepanation in which a hole was made in the skull by cutting or drilling it. They did so to alleviate pressure on the brain following an injury to the head, or to release evil spirits from the heads of mentally ill people (4).
When was trepanation last used?
The treatment was largely practiced until the early 16th century. An article in the journal World Neurosurgery reported that trepanation was widely practiced throughout China thousands of years ago.
What is the most common psychological disability throughout the world?
How common is mental illness?
- 970 million people worldwide have a mental health or substance abuse disorder. (
- Anxiety is the most common mental illness in the world, affecting 284 million people. (
- Globally, mental illness affects more females (11.9%) than males (9.3%). (
Why do we no longer perform frontal lobotomies to treat schizophrenia?
Because this surgery caused extensive brain injuries leading to diverse complications,21 the classical lobotomy fell into disuse after the 1950s, being replaced by localized procedures isolating areas from the orbital and cingulate regions.
What country has the best mental healthcare in the world *?
According to rankings of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Swiss health care system is among the highest performers on many quality measures (1) (Table 1).