THE FRONTAL LOBES AND NEUROSURGERY FOR PSYCHIATRIC-DISORDERS

The frontal lobe has been the main target for surgical treatment of me ntal illness over the last 60 years. Initially the surgery was crude a nd performed on patients with many different psychiatric disorders. Co ntemporary surgery utilizes stereotactic lesions which interrupt front o-thalamic and/or fronto-cingulate fibres. The findings of clinical, n eurochemical, neuroimaging, neuropsychological and physiological resea rch in this area are summarized. Current advances in clinical neurosci ence methods should be used in patients with these lesions to elucidat e the neural substrate of post-operative changes and optimize clinical practice.