Corpus callosotomy

"Callosotomy" redirects here. Not to be confused with Colostomy.

A corpus callosotomy (/kəˈlɔːs(ə)təmiː/) is a palliative surgical procedure for the treatment of medically refractory epilepsy.[1] The procedure was first performed in 1940 by William P. van Wagenen.[2] In this procedure, the corpus callosum is cut through, in an effort to limit the spread of epileptic activity between the two halves of the brain.[1]

After the operation, the brain has much more difficulty sending messages between the hemispheres. Although the corpus callosum is the largest white matter tract connecting the hemispheres, some limited interhemispheric communication is still possible via the anterior commissure and posterior commissure.[3]

  1. ^ a b Mathews, Marlon S.; Linskey, Mark E.; Binder, Devin K. (29 February 2008). "William P. van Wagenen and the first corpus callosotomies for epilepsy". Journal of Neurosurgery. 108 (3): 608–613. doi:10.3171/JNS/2008/108/3/0608. ISSN 0022-3085. PMID 18312112. S2CID 6007475.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Mathews was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Gazzaniga, M. S. (1 July 2000). "Cerebral specialization and interhemispheric communication: Does the corpus callosum enable the human condition?". Brain. 123 (7): 1293–1326. doi:10.1093/brain/123.7.1293.