The history of head injuries: an overview

Journal of the History of the Neurosciences
F C Rose

Abstract

The history of cerebral trauma is a large subject and this overview is an attempt to summarise the main trends of understanding and management over the millenia. Although beginning with anthropological evidence, papyrology and Homeric times, the main impetus for its scientific study began with Hippocrates, but little progress was made until the Salernitan period. Because the ancients believed it was the fractured bone and not the underlying neurological status that mattered, and determined whether an operation was to be performed, the classification of head injuries was based on the types of skull fracture and not the underlying neurological damage. Only in recent centuries was it realised that it was not skull fractures that were important but the brain lesion. Further improvement in management occurred during warring periods but the lessons learned were not passed on, although mortality from military wounds has steadily declined. Since only a small percentage of head injuries require surgery, consideration should be given to reserve the time and skills of the neurosurgeon to those cases requiring his expertise; this would require that the preliminary care should be undertaken by physicians with a specific interest in this field.

References

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Citations

Jul 16, 2005·Journal of the History of the Neurosciences·F Clifford Rose
Apr 17, 2013·Journal of the History of the Neurosciences·Eliezer SchnallYona Saperstein
Jan 21, 2009·Brain : a Journal of Neurology·Paulo Fontoura
Jul 17, 2014·Neurological Sciences : Official Journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology·T BreitenfeldD Breitenfeld
Sep 27, 2014·Critical Care Clinics·Georgia Korbakis, Thomas Bleck
Dec 17, 2014·World Neurosurgery·Oreste de Divitiis, Enrico de Divitiis
Feb 25, 2014·World Neurosurgery·Ahmet AcıdumanDeniz Belen
Aug 16, 2005·Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps·R E B Anakwe
Mar 27, 2004·The Journal of Biological Chemistry·Xiaoying ZhouR Christopher Benyon

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