![]() ![]() Where are they located? Do they lie within the brain? Since neurophysicians treat patients with a wide variety of abnormalities of the brain and neurosurgeons lay bare the brain and often work in its interior, can they provide insights? Functional magnetic resonance imaging now allows us to further localise function within the structure of the brain and correlate abnormalities of its structure and function.Įven so, two entities remain enigmatic: the mind and the soul. Modern marvels such as computerised tomography and magnetic resonance imaging of the nervous system have provided significant additional data. Similar abnormalities also follow chemical derangements in the brain. Subsequent studies (See, for example, Blumer and Benson, 1975) have shown a wide spectrum of abnormal behaviour (compulsive and explosive actions, lack of inhibition, unwarranted maniacal suspicion and alcohol and drug abuse) after injuries to and disease in the frontal or temporal lobes and their pathways to the deeper regions of the brain. His change in character after the accident made this the index case for personality change due to frontal lobe damage. The company that had previously regarded him as the most efficient and capable of their employees dismissed him from his job. The accident left him with little if any intellectual impairment but after the accident, Gage became vulgar, irresponsible, capricious and prone to profanity. A freak accident caused a metal tamping rod to enter under his left zygomatic arch and exit through the top of his skull (Barker, 1995). Before his accident, Gage was liked by friends and acquaintances who considered him to be honest, trustworthy, hard working and dependable. A dramatic example is the injury suffered by American railway foreman, Phineas Gage in 1848. Injury to, and disease in, the brain often provides crucial insights on the role of its different parts. We are now aware of nerve cells, their connections and their modes of communication amongst themselves and with a variety of other structures. Susan Greenfield’s book (Greenfield, 1997), intended for the lay person, embodies much useful information. Fielding Garrison’s work in 1969 (McHenry, 1969) to the more recent History of Neurology, edited by Finger and colleagues (Finger et al., 2009). The evolution of our knowledge of the structure and function of the brain has been amply documented in volumes ranging from McHenry’s revision of Dr. Despite our many explorations, we remained in awe of this organ. The organ that puzzled earlier observers most was the human brain. ![]() Millennia ago, we embarked on a quest for knowledge of the wonderful structure of man. If there be a soul in each of us, surely, it is enshrined here. The concept of brain death after irreversible damage to it has made all of us aware of ‘the cocktail of brain soup and spark’ in the brainstem so necessary for life. When the deeper parts of the brain came within the reach of neurosurgeons, the brainstem proved exceptionally delicate and vulnerable. The soul or atman, credited with the ability to enliven the body, was located by ancient anatomists and philosophers in the lungs or heart, in the pineal gland (Descartes), and generally in the brain. Experiences gained from accidental injuries (Phineas Gage) or temporal lobe resection (William Beecher Scoville) studies on how we see and hear and more recent data from functional magnetic resonance studies have made us aware of the extensive network of neurones in the cerebral hemispheres that subserve the functions of the mind. Galen’s localisation of imagination, reasoning, judgement and memory in the cerebral ventricles collapsed once it was evident that the functional units–neurones–lay in the parenchyma of the brain. The tabula rasa postulated by Aristotle cannot be localised to a particular part of the brain with the confidence that we can localise spoken speech to Broca’s area or the movement of limbs to the contralateral motor cortex. ![]() Hippocrates had focused attention on the brain as the seat of the mind. The philosophical neurosurgeon soon encounters difficulties when localising the abstract concepts of mind and soul within the tangible 1300-gram organ containing 100 billion neurones. Treatment of diseases of the brain by drugs or surgery necessitates an understanding of its structure and functions. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |