Rochester Institute of Technology RIT Scholar Works Theses 9-1-1995 The History of neurosurgery Savitha Viswanathan Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.rit.edu/theses Recommended Citation Viswanathan, Savitha, "The History of neurosurgery" (1995). Thesis. Rochester Institute of Technology. Accessed from This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by RIT Scholar Works. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses by an authorized administrator of RIT Scholar Works. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The College of Imaging Arts and Sciences In Candidacy for the Degree of MASTER OF FINE ARTS The History of Neurosurgery by Savitha Viswanathan September 1, 1995 APPROVALS Adviser: Glen Hintz/ _ Date: lIfo/etC Associate Adviser: Bob Wabnitz/ _ Date: iP:f/9S Assoicate Adiviser: .Thomas Cornell/ _ Date: Z ( k..:b.o. ~S- Departmen,tt:~~: Cleft Hintz/-:r- _ , ~CnslJ~~ I, ! (SavithaViswanathari) prefer to be contacted each time a request for production is made. I can be reached at the following adddress: 948 Heritage Drive Gettysburg, PA 17325 Date: _ he History of Neurosurgery Table of Contents Introduction i 1. The Stone Age Prehistoric Trephining 1 2. Ancient Egypt The Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus 10 3. Ancient Greece Hippocratic Medicine 20 4. Ancient Rome Claudius Galen 31 5. The Renaissance Ambroise Pare 38 6. The Eighteenth Century Percivall Pott 45 7. The Nineteenth Century Great Moments in Neurosurgery of the 19th Century 52 8. The Twentieth Century The Father of Modern Neurosurgery: Harvey Cushing 60 Bibliography 67 The History of Neurosurgery The earliest evidence of the practice of Neurosurgery are trephined skulls dating from the Neolithic period, making this branch of medicine over 8,000 years old.