A Further Review of the Results of Stereotactic Subcaudate Tractotomy

There is accumulating evidence of the clinical effectiveness of selective stereotactic psychosurgery in some severely disabled psychiatric patients who have not responded to other forms of treatment (Ström-Olsen and Carlisle, 1971; Bridges, Göktepe and Maratos, 1973; Kelly et al. , 1973). The risks of adverse effects resulting from operation are now small, and their significance is further diminished when related to the distress over long periods of those patients who are suitable for psychosurgery. The criteria for selection have been considered by Bridges and Bartlett (1973).