Report on One Hundred Female Patients Treated by Prefrontal Leucotomy

Abstract

This report concerns 100 patients treated by prefrontal leucotomy. The technique employed has followed that of Freeman and Watts.In the case of the 47 manic-depressive patients treated the prognosis without operation was considered very poor. The majority (34/44) had failed to respond to electric convulsive therapy, which was contra-indicated in the remainder by reason of physical health. Seven out of these 47 cases had been in hospital under two years, but there was a history of many years' poor social adaptation or recurrent mental illness. The average duration of illness in the recovered cases of this manic-depressive group was 31 months. That of the failures 45 months.