New light on cranial surgery in ancient Rome

Abstract

In exceptional cases, archaeology can shed new light on patients, diseases, and therapeutic interventions of the remote past. Cranial trepanation, an operation probably developed towards the end of the palaeolithic period and rooted in a mixture of empiricism and magical belief, has been widely documented from both the Old World and the New World since late neolithic times, showing the antiquity of the surgical approach to disease treatment. 1 Lisowski FP Prehistoric and early historic trepanation. in: Brothwell DR Sandison AT Diseases in antiquity. Thomas, Springfield1967: 651-672 Google Scholar , 2 Alt KW Jeunesse C Buitrago-Téllez C Wächter R Boës E Pichler SL Evidence for stone age cranial surgery. Nature. 1997; 387: 360 Crossref PubMed Scopus (70) Google Scholar , 3 Wells C Bones, bodies, and disease. Praeger, New York1964: 141-148 Google Scholar , 4 Margetts EL Trepanation of the skull by the medicine-men of primitive cultures, with particular reference to present-day native East African practice. in: Brothwell DR Sandison AT Diseases in antiquity. Thomas, Springfield1967: 673-701 Google Scholar , 5 Piggott A A trepanned skull of the Beaker period from Dorset and the practice of trepanning in prehistoric Europe. Proc Prehist Soc. 1940; 6: 112-132 Google Scholar , 6 Merbs C Trauma. in: Iscan MY Kennedy KAR Reconstruction of life from the skeleton. Liss, New York1989: 161-189 Google Scholar , 7 Germana F Fornaciari G Trapanazioni, craniotomie e traumi cranici in Italia. Giardini, Pisa1992 Google Scholar This type of surgery was mainly associated with traumatic lesions, but in most cases the underlying diseases, if any, remain unknown. Evidence of cranial trepanations on children is extremely rare, 1 Lisowski FP Prehistoric and early historic trepanation. in: Brothwell DR Sandison AT Diseases in antiquity. Thomas, Springfield1967: 651-672 Google Scholar , 2 Alt KW Jeunesse C Buitrago-Téllez C Wächter R Boës E Pichler SL Evidence for stone age cranial surgery. Nature. 1997; 387: 360 Crossref PubMed Scopus (70) Google Scholar , 3 Wells C Bones, bodies, and disease. Praeger, New York1964: 141-148 Google Scholar , 4 Margetts EL Trepanation of the skull by the medicine-men of primitive cultures, with particular reference to present-day native East African practice. in: Brothwell DR Sandison AT Diseases in antiquity. Thomas, Springfield1967: 673-701 Google Scholar , 5 Piggott A A trepanned skull of the Beaker period from Dorset and the practice of trepanning in prehistoric Europe. Proc Prehist Soc. 1940; 6: 112-132 Google Scholar , 6 Merbs C Trauma. in: Iscan MY Kennedy KAR Reconstruction of life from the skeleton. Liss, New York1989: 161-189 Google Scholar , 7 Germana F Fornaciari G Trapanazioni, craniotomie e traumi cranici in Italia. Giardini, Pisa1992 Google Scholar , 8 Parker S Roberts CA Manchester K A review of British trepanations with reports on two new cases. Ossa. 1986; 12: 141-157 Google Scholar which may reflect a lower childhood frequency of the disorders that were treated by cranial surgery, an uneven preservation of fragile skeletal remains, or a reluctance of physicians in ancient times to subject children to potentially life-threatening surgical procedures.