Prompt Cast
The History and Controversy of Lobotomies
TLDR Lobotomies were once used as a medical treatment for mental illnesses, but fell out of use due to their questionable effectiveness and harmful side effects. Dr. Walter Freeman, the main proponent of lobotomies, performed them without scientific basis, resulting in deaths and severe consequences for patients.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
This podcast episode is about the history and procedure of lobotomies, which were once used as a medical treatment.
03:45
This section provides background information on the state of mental healthcare in the 1930s, including overcrowded mental hospitals and the use of ineffective treatments like shock therapy.
07:37
In the 1930s, lobotomies were performed by drilling holes into the skull and injecting alcohol to destroy the fibers connecting the prefrontal cortex, based on an earlier study on monkeys.
11:29
Dr. Walter Freeman developed the transorbital or icepick lobotomy as a quicker and easier alternative to the drilling method, using a tool called an orbitoclast that resembled an icepick.
15:49
Dr. Walter Freeman developed the transorbital or icepick lobotomy, which involved inserting an icepick-like tool into the area between the eyeball and the eyelid, cracking through the orbital bone, and scrambling the frontal cortex, resulting in varied outcomes ranging from increased docility to rendering people vegetables.
20:07
Dr. Walter Freeman was a showman who performed lobotomies quickly and without scientific basis, resulting in deaths and severe consequences for patients, including Rosemary Kennedy and Howard Dully.
24:04
Howard Dully, who underwent a lobotomy as a child, spent his life wondering if there was something wrong with him, but eventually came to realize that he is a terrific person regardless of the lobotomy.
28:16
Lobotomies fell out of widespread use with the development and use of Thorazine, and Dr. Freeman, the main proponent of lobotomies, was banned from surgery after killing a woman during a lobotomy procedure, but lobotomies are still performed today under a different name in some countries.
32:23
Lobotomies fell out of widespread use with the development and use of Thorazine, and Dr. Freeman, the main proponent of lobotomies, was banned from surgery after killing a woman during a lobotomy procedure, but lobotomies are still performed today under a different name in some countries.
Categories:
Society & Culture
