It may seem as though brain surgery is a product of the 20th century; after all, doctors need advanced surgical technology to perform such a delicate, dangerous procedure, right? According to a recent and surprising discovery, this may not be the case.

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In 2008, researchers at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven and Tulane University in New Orleans published a study of 411 ancient Incan skeletons recently unearthed in the Peruvian Andes. Human skulls dating back to AD 1000 showed evidence of undergoing a type of primitive yet effective surgery to treat head injuries. Specifically, small portions of the skulls had been removed by a procedure known as trepanation (also called trephination).

This procedure, archaeologists believe, was performed mostly on men who had been wounded in combat. By boring a hole in the skull, the surgeon aimed to drain excess fluid that built up in the skull after a head blow. Marks on the skeletons indicated that the Incan doctors created the hole by scraping away at the skull until they reached the brain. Evidence suggests that it took many years to perfect the method, and that few wounded soldiers survived the first wave of trepanations.

By the time European explorers arrived in South America, however, Incan surgeons had largely perfected the technique and boasted survival rates of nearly 90 percent. Incan surgeons used wild tobacco, maize beer, and medicinal plants to relieve pain and reduce the likelihood of infection. Though doctors today have anesthesia, x-rays, and better surgical tools, a similar procedure in which a piece of skull is removed to reduce bleeding and pressure on the brain caused by severe head trauma is still commonly performed.

ADDITIONAL FACTS

  1. Although trepanation was most common in men, remains of some women also show signs of the procedure. It is believed that the Incas may also have used the surgery for cases of epilepsy.
  2. The coca plant, used as an anesthetic by Incan doctors, is still widely chewed across the Andean region and acts as a mild stimulant. It can also be processed into cocaine.
  3. After trepanation surgery, Incan warriors who survived the procedure sometimes wore the removed section of their skulls as good-luck amulets.