The Lobotomy: The Howard Dully Case

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Medicine has always played a major role in society, but it was not until the early 1900s that mental illnesses were receiving more attention. People began searching for cures and new treatments were starting, or at least being tried. Famous psychiatrist, Walter Freeman, created the first ever lobotomy in the United States. Although he was not the first ever to attempt one, he was the one known for having the best method. The lobotomy is a type of neurosurgery, or surgery performed on the brain, also known as psychosurgery (Freeman). He created his version of the lobotomy in 1936 with his partner James Watts. The medical field marveled at the new procedure and it was not long before Walter Freeman became a household name. After realizing his …show more content…

There was not much else out there to help, and technically he did cure whatever he was asked to fix, it just had major side effects that could include death. Although, I also think the Howard Dully case was completely ridiculous and a procedure of that magnitude could happen without any kind of testing, background check, or referral from another doctor. While I am against the risk of the lobotomy, I still believe Freeman deserves every bit of credit he got. Although it was very unfortunate that his career came to an end on a bad note, when he lost his medical licenses due to a patient dying while he was operating. Considering he was heading over 2,500 different procedures, it is hard to believe he only messed up once, so that is something that sticks out to …show more content…

Studies into his procedures and their results helped lead to a whole new understanding of how the brain and its different parts work and can impact a human being. It paved the way for new medicines and technologies that are being used today to help treat people that suffer from many different kinds of mental disorders. I think that is what makes the lobotomy not only necessary, but one of the most influential medical surgeries ever in history. Mental illnesses and the human brain are one of the hardest things for doctors and scientists alike to try and figure out. There are so many different illnesses and even different versions or severities of the same illness. The lobotomy also fixed the problem of the extreme overcrowding on mental institutions. Before people who suffered from mental disorders really had any chance of a cure or treatment, they would all just get thrown into some kind of institution that really did not help at all, it just served as somewhere to put the people. This eventually became a nasty problem due to too many people filling up the institutions and with not even care, workers, or space available. So, whether the outcome was a success or a death, the lobotomy no doubt helped to get people out of institutions. One could also say that the surgery itself helped lead to different surgeries on different body parts more successful. With

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