Question

Compared to early, crude lobotomies, modern psychosurgery

O removes or destroys more brain tissue.
O is performed much less often.
O is used mainly on those who are depressed.
O targets the frontal lobes instead of the amygdala.

Answer 1

Modern psychosurgery is performed less frequently than historical lobotomies, due to advances in mental health treatment and understanding of brain function. Techniques are more precise now and rarely involve extensive tissue removal, with some procedures targeting the corpus callosum to treat epilepsy while preserving unique hemisphere functions.

Step-by-step explanation:

Compared to early, crude lobotomies, modern psychosurgery is performed much less often, reflecting advances in mental health treatment and the understanding of neurology. The prefrontal lobotomy, popular in the 1940s and 1950s, involved severing connections between the prefrontal cortex and other brain regions, and was used to treat a variety of disorders, including mood and personality disorders. Advancements in pharmacology, particularly the development of antipsychotic drugs, have reduced the need for such invasive procedures. Furthermore, contemporary neurosurgical techniques are more precise, owing to improved imaging and neurological understanding, thus less brain tissue is affected compared to the historical approach of lobotomies. In certain severe cases of epilepsy, rather than extensive tissue removal, surgeries may involve the cutting of the corpus callosum—a procedure that carries insights into the unique functions of the two hemispheres without extensive tissue damage.